Nina's Destiny
by MeggieBlack
Summary: Nina Jackson is the daughter of Poseidon, Percy Jackson's twin, a demi-god, a prophetic-seer, an elemental mage, and a witch. Read as she journeys through Hogwarts and Camp Half-Blood and falls in love with Apollo. Will she survive fighting three wars?
1. Prologue

Prologue: Prophecies

In ancient times there was a prophecy given by the Oracle Delphi while she was talking with Lord Apollo.

The first born daughter of the sea shall be the sun's true love

Born into two different worlds,

She will face many challenges

She will be learn much from the twin archers

And will save all those who are innocent

She shall be the sun's one true love

Apollo gasped and quickly rushed to gather the other Olympians to tell them of his findings. Once they were all in the throne room he repeated the prophecy to them.

"Well, we will just have to wait to see who Poseidon's first daughter is, seeing as he hasn't had one yet. And when he does we shall tell her of the prophecy." there was instant chaos at this.

"I would rather not have her know the prophecy unless I am the one to tell her of the prophecy because it seems wrong should someone else do it." everyone gaped at the normally excited god's serious tone but all nodded in agreement.

"Council dismissed," Zeus ordered.

Millennia later, Apollo would come to know the day after the end of World War II to be his worst. Many of his children had been killed in the war and his oracle had just made another prophecy. Now, normally he would be excited about the prophecy part, of course he wouldn't be excited about his children dying you silly mortals, except this prophecy entailed bad news for him. It stated a child of one of the big three would reach sixteen and either save or destroy Olympus. Zeus, being the coward he is, forced Poseidon and Hades into an agreement not to have any more children. This was heartbreaking for Apollo because the one girl that was supposed to be his true love was the first born daughter of Poseidon, and even after all of these millennia, Poseidon had yet to sire a girl. Apollo buried his head his hands and sighed. "It seems I will never get to meet you my love," he whispered softly.


	2. Chapter 1: The Ross Twins and Nina

pter One: The Ross Twins and Nina

A young girl sat on the bench in Central Park. Her waist-length, black hair was pulled up into a messy bun on top of her head and a large book was in her lap. If you looked closely you would notice that none of the book was in English, but in a strange language with strange symbols. You would also notice that instead of a fiction picture book about fairy tales, like most eight year olds read, it was a dictionary.

This strange, young girl was named Christina, Christina Jackson. She happened to have a to have a twin of the name Percy and a mother named Sally. Now, Christina, or Nina as she prefers to be called, also has many other important family members that care very much about her, she just hasn't met them yet.

Most people would be wondering what an eight year old girl would be doing out in the cold morning air of Manhattan in the middle of March wearing nothing more than jeans, a tank-top, and a pair of flip-flops, but the people who lived in the area were quite used to it. Nina's mother didn't care all too much for her and her step-father, Gabe, absolutely despised her. Her twin brother loved her very much and thought that their mother did too. Gabe hated both twins and was not afraid to let them know it. Sally didn't hide her hatred of her daughter either, as long as her little angel, Percy, wasn't around. Whenever her brother wasn't around, Nina would sit out in the park reading dictionaries in different languages.

The girl was trying to learn as many languages as she possibly could and already knew five. It was quite easy seeing as she had eidetic memory. She had already learned four languages, Spanish, French, German, and her favorite, Italian. On this particular day, Nina was teaching herself Russian. Our little eight year old would practice her skills with any city goers who spoke the language she was choosing to practice that day. She had many acquaintances that way and many people of different ethnicities would come out to talk to the girl wonder.

It was on this particular day, March 17th to be exact, that another set of twins, one boy and one girl, found Nina reading her Russian dictionary that she checked out from the school library. The twins, not having been to this part of Central Park before, were rather curious about the young girl. These two weren't just ordinary teens, definitely not, these were the immortal twin archers, Lady Artemis and Lord Apollo. The two decided to see what the young mortal was up to.

Artemis' POV

I was out walking with Apollo in Central Park, for once in his immortal life he wasn't pretending to be an idiot, when we saw a young girl reading a rather large book, I'm talking Athena sized book here. We decided to see what the girl was doing.

As we got near her head popped up. I was shocked by her sea green eyes that looked exactly like the Atlantic on one of it's calm days.

"Oh, hello there,"she said softly in a dreamy voice that sounded a lot like Apollo's roman daughter, Luna. "Do either of you by any chance speak Russian, I've just finished the dictionary and wanted to test how well I can speak it."

"Erm, don't you need to do a little more than just read the dictionary?" Apollo asked. I nodded my head in agreement, both of us were gaping slightly at the girl.

"Oh no, of course most people would, but not me, I have eidetic memory. I was actually about to go look for someone who can speak it, so if you can't, I guess I need to go on a hunt," she said in the same voice.

I blinked a few times before saying, "Нет, мы оба говорят на на нем свободно и были бы рады чтобы помочь вам."

"О, замечательно. Я был бы очень признателен, если вы мне поможете," she said perfectly in her calm voice.

"Рад помочь," Apollo smiled at her. "Я Morgan Ross и это моя сестра Diane."

"Меня зовут Christina Jackson, можете называть меня Nina."

'Wow,' I thought, 'this girl is amazing.'

Apollo's POV

I was really impressed with Nina's fluency after only reading the dictionary! It was flawless. I wonder if she knows any other languages? I could tell that Artemis was thinking the same thing because of our twin link. "Hey Nina?" I asked. After she looked at me I continued, "Do you know any other languages?" She nodded her head eagerly.

"This is my fifth, not including English, of course. I also know French, Spanish, Polish, and, my personal favorite, Italian."

"Really?" Artemis asked, and at the nod of Nina's head, asked, "And all of them by reading dictionaries?" Nina responded with another nod of her head. "That's incredible!" I nodded my head in agreement with my sister.

Nina's POV

I met some really nice people at the park. Their names were Morgan and Diane Ross. They were helping me with my Russian. Oh no, it's almost five, I have to go back home for dinner or Sally'll get mad.

"I have to go it's almost time for my dinner will you guys be here tomorrow?" Morgan smiled and nodded his head but Diane shook her head.

"I have to go visit some friends in Connecticut, but Morgan will be here," Diane told me with a hint of sadness in her voice. "Hopefully, I'll see you sometime soon though, I should be back in a week."

I nodded my head eagerly before waving, grabbing my dictionary, and running in the direction of my apartment. When I got to the building and ran inside, I waved to Eddie and dashed up the stairs. Clutching the book to my chest I fumbled in my pocket for my key. After I located it, I stuck it in the keyhole, unlocking the door, and shoved open the door with my foot. I pulled the key from the lock and ran upstairs to dump my things in my bedroom, which was about as big as the storage closets at school.

I, then, ran down the stairs, turned the corner, and skidded to a stop in front of the kitchen table. Gabe and Sally both glared at me, Sally did so slightly more subtly than Gabe. I flashed a grin at Percy while pulling out the rickety, chipped, line chair from beneath the table. Oh, yummy, it's spaghetti and meatballs. Now if only Sally could cook a little better...

Apollo's POV

Nina was really sweet yesterday, I wonder why she was out there all alone? Most parents wouldn't let their child wander around a place like New York all by themselves. Does she even have parents? Oh gods, I hope she does. She's way too sweet and innocent to wander around New York by herself. I am definitely going to meet her later today. Uh whoops, got too close to Colorado. Hope Khione doesn't yell at me for ruining her snow.

Artemis' POV

I wonder if Nina would be interested in becoming a hunter. She would definitely make a great one, and as a bonus she has the perfect archer's build. Nah, she probably likes it way too much at her home. Then again, does she have a good home? What kind of parent lets their child wander Manhattan all by themselves? We were with her for a good two hours so her parents weren't around. That poor girl, I can see us getting very close in the near future.

**I started writing this on a plane ride from Salt Lake City to Chicago and got really into the plot. I hope you guys like it because I'm still pretty new to the whole Fan fiction thing. Нет, мы оба говорят на на нем свободно и были бы рады чтобы помочь вам means No, we both speak it fluently and would be glad to help you. О, замечательно. Я был бы очень признателен, если вы мне поможете means Oh, great. I would be very grateful if you could help me. Рад помочь means I am happy to help and Я Morgan Ross и это моя сестра Diane means I'm Morgan Ross and this is my sister Diane. Меня зовут Christina Jackson, можете называть меня Nina means My name is Christina Jackson, you can call me Nina.**


	3. Chapter 2: Of Music and a Pizzeria

Chapter Two: Of Music and a Pizzeria

Nina's POV

I went back to the park today, although instead of a dictionary I brought my flute. It's rusty and slightly dented, but I love it all the same. I bring it to Central Park when I don't feel like reading, Percy gave it to me one year for Christmas. Best present ever! I hope Morgan is there again today, I wish Diane was going to be there too, but I'll take what I can get.

I ran the rest of the way to the park because the anxiety mixed with my ADHD was killing me. When I got there, Morgan was sitting on the bench waiting for me. Oh my god, he's got a guitar with him! Maybe he'll play with me! Nah, none of the other musicians like to play with me, they say I'm not good enough for them, but everyone else listens to me.

"Hey Morgan," I grin as I reach the bench, sitting down on it.

"Hey Sparkles, what's up?"

"Sparkles?" I retort back with a raised eyebrow. Wow! Only Percy's ever given me a nickname before!

"Yup, you don't like it," he asked me, slightly concerned.

"Oh no, I love it, no one has ever given me a nickname before, well except my twin brother."

"You have a twin! No way, me too!" he grinned at me. I giggled a little.

"I know you have a twin, I met her yesterday, remember?"

"Oh yeah," he said while rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. I giggle again. "Is that a flute, Sparkles?" I nod and pass the case over to him. He opens it and looks inside. "Wow," he whispers, astonished. "This is one of the best of the market. Where'd you get it?"

"My brother, Percy, got it for me."

"This is amazing, do you mind if I play it?" he asked, still in awe. I shook my head and he brought it to his lips. When Morgan started playing I was the one awestruck, it was beautiful. Everyone in the vicinity stopped what they were doing and walked over to hear him play. After a few minutes he put it down. "You have yourself a very good flute, my little Sparkles." I giggled at the nickname again before I asked him about his guitar.

Apollo's POV

Where does an eight year old get such a good flute? Never mind that, it played fantastically. "What about your guitar?" she asked me. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and smiled at her.

"This, Sparkles, is my first acoustic guitar. You think you can learn it as fast as you did Russian yesterday?" I asked her. She nodded her head eagerly and sat down beside me. I wrapped the Strap around her neck and pulled her into my lap so that I could help her better. At the sudden movement she completely froze. I wonder why? "Hey, Sparks, you alright?" I questioned.

She took a deep breath and said," Oh, I'm fine it's just I'm not really used to sitting on people's laps." I nodded my head and then stopped suddenly.

"You do know to you just said that in Italian, right," I replied in the same language.

"Oh, did I, I do that sometimes, just switch to another language, mostly Italian." I laughed at that. She is a strange kid. Kind of like my daughter Luna, they are both unique and have many differences but they talk the same way.

"Wait don't your parents ever let you sit in their laps?"

"I don't know my Dad he was lost at sea before I was born, and my mother and stepfather both don't like me very much."

"Well-" I started but was cut off.

"I'd rather not talk about this, right now."

"Alright," I said, only agreeing because of the Hirt in her voice," but we will talk. Now,let me teach you how to play." I grabbed her hands and showed her all the notes before teaching her a few chords. "Think you got it?" I asked her. She nodded eagerly and slid to the left off of my lap. She picked up the pick and began to strum. I was speechless. That was nothing short of perfection.

After a few minutes she stopped and looked up at me, "Like that?" she asked in that quiet voice of hers. I nodded my head a few times before regaining speech.

"That was no joke perfection," I managed to sputter out. She blushed and whispered a quiet thank you. "What's even better is that I've had some lyrics I've been trying to find a rhythm for and that was the perfect melody, play it again."

She grinned and began strumming.

_My eyes are open wide_

_And by the way, I made it_

_Through the day_

_I watched the world outside_

_By the way, I'm leaving out_

_Today_

_I just saw Hayley's comet_

_She waved_

_Said, "Why you always running in place?"_

_Even the man in the_

_Moon disappeared_

_Somewhere in the_

_Stratosphere_

_Tell my mother,_

_Tell my father_

_I've done the best I can_

_To make them realize_

_This is my life_

_I hope they understand_

_I'm not angry, I'm just saying..._

_Sometimes goodbye_

_Is a second chance_

_Please don't cry_

_One tear for me_

_I'm not afraid of_

_What I have to say_

_This is my one and_

_Only voice_

_So listen close, it's_

_Only for today_

_I just saw Hayley's comet_

_She waved_

_Said, "Why you always running in place?"_

_Even the man in the_

_Moon disappeared_

_Somewhere in the_

_Stratosphere_

_Tell my mother,_

_Tell my father_

_I've done the best I can_

_To make them realize_

_This is my life_

_I hope they understand_

_I'm not angry, I'm just saying..._

_Sometimes goodbye_

_Is a second chance_

_Here's my chance_

_This is my chance_

_Tell my mother,_

_Tell my father_

_I've done the best I can_

_To make them realize_

_This is my life_

_I hope they understand_

_I'm not angry, I'm just saying..._

_Sometimes goodbye_

_Is a second chance_

_Sometimes goodbye_

_Is a second chance_

_Sometimes goodbye_

_Is a second chance_

Everyone around us started clapping and Nina looked down, her face bright pink. "Sparkles, you want to go get some lunch?" I asked her in an attempt to save her from her embarrassment. She nodded, slinging the guitar over her back and grabbing my hand.

Nina's POV

Morgan pulled me along through the streets of New York, "Where's your place, I want to ask your mom for permission before taking you out." Uh oh, Sally's not going to like me bothering her, but she won't yell at me because their are going to be more than just me, her, and Gabe.

"Um, Sally's not home, she working, but I can take you there."

"Alright- wait why did you call her Sally?"

"She's never acted like my mom so I'm not going to call her that."

He frowned slightly before saying,"Fair enough, c'mon let's go." I grabbed his hand and pulled him to the candy shop.

"Mom!" I called when I got into the shop with Morgan trailing behind me. She glared at me slightly and then smiled, putting up an act for all of the customers.

"Hello dear," she said in a faux cheerful voice. As soon as I was close, she hissed at me, "What are you doing here you little-"but Morgan cut her off by clearing his throat.

She gasped when she saw him and shoved me to the side, still staring at him. They began to whisper, but I couldn't what they were saying until Morgan threatened her, just barely loud enough for me to hear, "If I ever see you talk to her or hear about you or your filthy husband hurting her you will regret it, do I make myself clear!" he ground out through gritted teeth. Sally nodded her head vigorously and Morgan turned around, "Great, it's settled, Sparkles, you're spending the rest of the day with me and then, I will take you back to your apartment, see you later Ms. Jackson. Sally nodded and waved us off. Morgan grabbed my hand and pulled me to a subway station.

"How'd you scare her like that," I asked him, very impressed.

He grinned at me,"Mad skills," and pushed me onto the train. Morgan sat down in the only empty seat and then pulled me onto his lap. He shifted the guitar so that it was in my lap and started up a conversation on the different genres of music. After a few stops, I realized we were leaving New York, I started to get a little nervous.

"Um, Morgan? Where are we going?" I asked, my voice shaking quite a bit.

"Hoboken," was his short reply, then the train stopped and he pulled me off, stringing the guitar on his back with my flute in his other hand.

After a few turns we turned into a pizzeria. "Welcome, my lovely Sparkles, to Benny Tudino's Pizzeria." I stared at him for a few seconds, blinked twice, and finished it up with a face-palm. Morgan just cocked his head, very confused by my actions.

I sighed and said, "Here I was thinking you were kidnapping me and you just took me to a pizzeria!" Morgan and I laughed and each of us ordered one slice of cheese pizza, a small soda, and breadsticks for the table.

"So, Sparkles, tell me about yourself," Morgan prompted.

"What do you want to know because there isn't much to me." When he just shrugged I continued. "My full name is Christina Teresa Victoria Allyson Jackson, I'm eight, I was born August 18,1990, my favorite color is purple because Sally absolutely hates it. I love learning and playing music, my favorite instrument is the acoustic guitar because it sounds the nicest, I love soft rock and some pop songs but most are from a while back, my brother's name is Perseus Theseus Jackson, the woman I am forced to call my mother is named Sally Jackson, my step-father is called Gabe Ugliano and has never worked a day in his life, and I've never met my father but I totally sympathize with him because he dated my mother." I took a deep breath,"Now what about you?"

"Wow, okay, I have a twin sister named Diane, my mom's name is Leto, my father hates me, I love anything to do with literature, I took up archery when I was younger, and I hate violence but will beat you up if you hurt my family, my father not included in that."

"I do believe this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship," I giggled. Morgan laughed and nodded.

**Hey here is the second actual chapter, I know I'm putting up a lot at once, but these are the chapters I wrote on the plane and I don't want them to got accidently deleted. Oh, before I forget I don't own Harry Potter or Percy Jackson, I only own Nina. I don't own Second Chance by Shinedown either.**


	4. Chapter 3: I'm an Elemental Mage

Chapter Three: I'm an Elemental Mage

A ten year old Nina grumbled as she walked home through the rain, her brother had stayed home sick that day. When she got into her apartment, she completely disregarded her mother and stormed up the stairs. "Christina Jackson, you will not ignore me like that."

"Since when have you cared about me," Nina grumbled under her breath. "I'm so sorry mother dearest," she called over her shoulder. She pushed open her brothers door and walked over to his bed. Sitting down next to him she wiped the sweaty hair from his forehead and placed a kiss on it. "Perce, wake up."

"Mmm? Hey sorellina, your wet."

Nina giggled and pulled her satchel up onto her lap, "I'm older, fratellino. Here is your homework." She placed small stack of paper on her brother's night stand and stood up."Oh, and it's raining outside."

Percy laughed weakly, "I'm still taller than you, go dry off before you get the flu too."

"Ti amo, fratellino," Nina called as she walked out.

"Ti amo troppo, sorellina," Percy called back before going into a weak coughing fit.

Nina's POV

Hopefully he feels better tomorrow, I hate seeing him so sick. I opened my door and walked over to my mirror. Grabbing my long hair I began to wring it out. I sighed less than a month ago I had chopped it off to my shoulders and donated it, but it apparently had a mind of its own and liked this length because every time I cut it it just grows back, oh well. When I turned around to get dry clothes from my closet I heard a knock on my window. I flipped around and smiled so wide it felt like I broke my face. All thoughts of being soaked left my mind as I rushed to open the window. "Morgie, I haven't seen you in a few days," I squealed.

"I missed you too Sparkles, why aren't you wet? Did you skip school like I told you you should."

I giggled then processed the first thing he said, " Wait what? I was wet a minute ago!"

"Not anymore you aren't." I looked down and gasped. My clothes were completely dry. I grabbed and lock of my hair and studied it. "S-stuff like this has happened to me before. S-Sally says it only-ly happens t-to freaks. Y-you don't hate me d-do you?"

"Course not Sparkles, it doesn't happen to freaks, watch." Morgan ordered the last part and I watched as he held out his hand and a ball of light appeared. "Relax it means you're probably a Water Mage, Di and I are Light Mages. Try and focus on the water in the room and form a ball of it in your hand." I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the water in the room. Once I felt that I had concentrated hard enough on it, I tried to form a ball. When I opened my eyes, there was a sphere of water sitting on it. Gasped and lost my concentration causing it to land with a splash on the ground.

"Wow," I exclaimed. Morgan laughed.

"C'mon my little eidetic I will teach you all of the things you need to know. The gestures are exactly the same for each element, you just need to focus on your particular one." I nodded my head eager to learn more.

Apollo's POV

I knew there was something strange about Nina I just didn't know what it was. Wow, Elemental Mages are really rare, especially Water Mages. All gods are Mages. What element they control depends on their domains. Zeus is a Lightning Mage, Hades is a Shadow Mage, and Poseidon is a Water Mage. Maybe Nina is the daughter of Poseidon. Nah, I would have sensed her Demi-god aura and there's the oath. Nope, it's best not to get my hopes up only for another heart break. I should contact Artemis. **Sorry about the short chapter but I needed to get the mage part in so that you would understand some stuff in future chapters, like why Snape won't hate Nina. Until next time, please review so that I can fix my story so it's the best it can be.**


	5. Chapter 4:Calling People Witches Is Rude

Chapter Four: Calling People Witches Is Very Rude

Nina's POV

Percy and I are turning eleven in two weeks, I know it's not that big and all but birthdays really excite me now that I've met Morgan and Di. They, along with Percy are the only ones to get me anything that means something. Sally just gets me candy so that Percy will keep thinking that she's perfect. I don't tell him otherwise because I don't want him hating me too. Oh, Morgan is at the window I better let him in. "Hi Morgan, you're over early."

"I just had this weird feeling like something odd is going to happen that I should be here for." I shrugged and sat down on my bed so that we could catch up. Suddenly, I heard Sally calling me from downstairs.

"Christina, there is a man at the door here for you."

"I'm on my way!" I shouted back. I sent an apologetic glance at Morgan, who just shrugged, and raced down the steps. "I'm here, oh hello, I don't know you."

The man stared at me for a second then said," No, I wouldn't know how you would know me either. My name is Severus Snape and I am a professor at a prestigious school in Britain," he replied in a British accent. I giggled.

"Well, I like your accent so come on in." He nodded and I led him to the living room. "Now to kick things off, I don't meet with anyone unless my supervisor is here."

"Christina, what on earth are you talking about," Sally growled out through gritted teeth.

"Morgan your supervision is needed," I called up the stairs. My only response was the thunder of footsteps. Morgan came into the room and sat down on my left. He nodded at me, glared at Sally, then cocked his head in that way of his. "This is Severus Snape, he's British and a professor, therefore I decided I needed your supervision so Sally doesn't say something stupid." Said person glared at me.

"Right, so I come from a school called Hogwarts," here Morgan and I interrupted him with huge bursts of laughter. "Yes, I realize it's hilarious. Anyway, it is a school of magic, you, Christina, are a witch." Here, I stood up and slapped him across the face. "That was extremely rude. You don't call people things like witches. And you, Morgan, you were supposed to stop me from doing that."

"Sorry?" he said more like a question. I huffed and sat back down.

"Oh, you may continue now, I have really bad mood swings sometimes."

Snape nodded his head, rubbing the side of his face. "As I was about to say, being a witch isn't a bad thing, it just means that you can do magic. "

"Oh, I thought only Mages could do magic."

"Mages are extinct, how have you heard about them, muggles, or non-magic folk, don't know about them."

"Um, because I am one so is Morgan and his twin Diane. Morgan and Di are Light Mages and I'm a Water Mage."

"No way, may I see. Mages were supposed to have disappeared years ago." I nodded and held out my hand forming a ball of water in it. "Remarkable, now as you must know magic is indeed real and you have been invited Hogwarts. If you would like to attend I shall owl the headmaster, owls are how we get our mail around, and take you and your guardian to Diagon Alley to get your supplies.

**I know, another short chapter, but I wanted to give Diagon Alley it's own chapter. I promise, the next chapter will be longer. I don't know when I'll be able to update next, because that was the last chapter I had written and I need to babysit my little sister in the mornings but I'll shoot for in the next couple of days.**


	6. Chapter 5: Diagon Alley

**Thank you to the person who reviewed my story, I think it's a cute pairing too. No one gives Apollo enough credit. He has a really sensitive side that people totally ignore. Nina and Apollo are perfect for each other. Please review people, I love reading your comments.**

_Nina talking to her familiar._

Chapter Five: Diagon Alley

"Alright Mrs. Jackson, Miss Jackson, if you'll just take my arms, I'll apparate us to Diagon Alley," Professor Snape said, holding out both arms to the females in the room.

Sally scoffed, "I'm not going, the boy can, and I'm not paying for that idiot to go to some freak show school." Sally flipped her hair over her shoulder and marched out of the room.

Apollo rolled his eyes. "I'm as good as her guardian sir and I'm sure I have more than enough money to pay for it all."

"The school itself is free it's the supplies you need to worry about," Severus laughed. "Now, grab onto my arm and I will apparate us to the Leaky Cauldron." At the confused looks, he added, "Which is the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron. The two nodded their heads and grabbed onto Severus' outstretched arms. With a crack the trio disappeared and reappeared in the middle of the Leaky Cauldron.

"Ah, Professor Snape, if only you had come a few minutes earlier. Hagrid brought Harry Potter through here.," the toothless barman exclaimed. "Are you on Hogwart's business too, then."

"Yes, I'm bring Miss Jackson to gather her things, along with her erm, how are your relations to Miss Jackson exactly?"

"She's my best friend, Professor, as odd as that sounds."

"Right... anyway, we must be going." Placing a hand on each child's shoulder, Severus led them out into a small alleyway. Taking out his wand, he tapped a few bricks and stepped back, allowing the magic to do its job. Apollo and Christina stared open-mouthed as the passageway opened. Laughing slightly at their expressions, Professor Snape led them into the Alley. "Welcome to Diagon Alley."

"Wow, that magic is very different from mage magic," Christina said, in awe.

"Ah, yes, since most people here don't know that mages still exist, it would be for the best if you don't tell anyone that you two are mages." Apollo and Christina nodded in agreement. "And before I forget, here is your Hogwarts letter." Severus handed the letter to Christina, who pocketed it.

"Is there some place to exchange money, because I don't think they are going to accept American muggle money here," Apollo said.

"I was just leading you there, welcome to Gringotts. The British wizarding bank." Severus led the other two inside and to a goblin.

When the goblin saw Apollo he gasped and beckoned him forward. "My lord, an honor to have you grace this bank. Do your companions know?" the goblin asked Apollo in Gobbledygook.

"No they do not Master Teller," Apollo replied.

Apollo's POV

I was shocked by how amazing Hecate's pet world is, it was incredible. There magic surpasses Mage magic, but I do know they can only form very simple elemental spells. I was shocked when I saw the goblins running the bank and even more surprised when the one recognized who I am.

Normal POV

"I assume you will be able to exchange drachma for wizard money," Apollo continued.

The goblin nodded and held out his hand for the large golden coins. Apollo, while carefully keeping them hidden, passed them over. The goblin reached under his desk and grabbed the correct amount of wizarding coins, placing them in a bag. "Here you are my lord."

"Thank you, may your gold flow in an endless river, Master Teller."

"And may your arrows fly straight and true, Lord Apollo."

Apollo flashed him a grin and stepped away from the counter. He tossed Nina the money bag and said, "Well, what are we waiting for, a herd of unicorns?" Nina giggled and hooked her arm through his dragging him outside. Severus smiled slightly at the two friends, his first real smile since the Potters had been murdered.

"Alright let's see this list," said Nina. she opened the thick envelope and pulled out the second sheet.

**UNIFORM**

**First-year students will require:**

**1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)**

**2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear**

**3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)**

**4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)**

**Please note that all pupils close should carry name tags**

**COURSE BOOKS**

**All students should have a copy of each of the following:**

_**The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) **_**by Miranda Goshawk**

_**A History of Magic**_ **by Bathilda Bagshot**

_**Magical Theory **_**by Adalbert Waffling**

_**A Beginners' Guide to Transfiguration**_ **by Emeric Switch**

_**One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi**_ **by Phyllida Spore**

_**Magical Drafts and Potions**_ **by Arsenius Jigger**

_**Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them **_**by Newt Scamander**

_**The Dark-Forces: A Guide to Self Defense **_**by Quentin Trimble**

**OTHER EQUIPMENT**

**1 wand**

**1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)**

**1 set glass or crystal phials**

**1 telescope**

**1 set brass scales**

**Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad**

**PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS**

"Well, I guess we should get started then," Nina said. She grabbed Apollo's hand and started pulling him towards Madam Malkins', which happened to be the closest shop. Severus waited for the two outside.

"Hogwarts you two?" questioned Madam Malkins.

"Not me, just her," said Apollo, gesturing to Nina. Madam Malkins smiled at her and she waved back.

"Come back here you two, the two boys just left so I'll be helping you." Nina smiled at the kind woman and followed her back. She stood on the stool and chatted happily with Madam Malkins while being fitted. "Alrighty, that's you done deary, come back and visit when you have the chance won't you, I quite enjoyed talking to you. Nina giggled and waved.

"I will, it was nice meeting you Ma'am." When they got outside Apollo ruffled Nina's hair. "What's wrong Morgan?" Nina asked.

"Nothing, it just seems like you can get along with everyone except your family." Nina stared at him for a second before shrugging and pulling him to the apothecary. After, lunch, Nina checked the list again, "Alright I just need my wand, erm, Professor Snape?" When he looked at her Nina continued," Why are students allowed to bring owls to school?"

"They are specially trained owls that deliver mail."

"Oh, that explains it, I should probably get one of those to keep in touch with you Morgan, I was worried I wouldn't be able to contact you." Apollo nodded his head in agreement.

"Maybe you'll find your familiar." At Nina and Severus' confused looks he elaborated. "Every mage has one familiar, or more depending on how powerful they are, mine is a phoenix named Siria."

"Cool!" chirped Nina. "Why didn't you tell me?" Apollo smirked and shrugged his shoulders.

"A phoenix, you must be incredibly powerful for a magic creature to bond to you, the only people I've heard of that happening to are the founders of Hogwarts, Merlin, and Dumbledore. And they are the most powerful witches and wizards of their ages. Until Nina showed up that is, I think she could beat Dumbledore once fully trained," Snape said in a whisper.

"You could say that I'm pretty power and Nina definitely is," Apollo said sheepishly before walking into Eeylops Owl Emporium. "Okay Nina, reach out for your element, feel it in the atmosphere and focus on the magic. Your familiar, if it's here, will come to you." Nina closed her eyes and focused. Almost immediately a petite snowy owl flew onto her shoulder and nipped lightly at her ear. Nina popped her eyes open and smiled at the bird. Gently, she scratched it's head.

_Are you my familiar?_

_Yes Christina, I am._

_Oh, perfect. But please, call me Nina._

_Alrighty then._

"This is her," smiled Nina. "I shall name her Skittles and she will be one of my bestest friends." Apollo laughed at the name and Nina stuck her tongue out at him.

_I like the name Nina._

_Me too, Skittles._

"Skittles likes it Morgan," Nina said, smugly.

"I love the name, Sparkles. It's just funny. Now come on let's go pay." Apollo wrapped an arm around Nina's shoulders and led her to the cashier. Paying the man 3 galleons and seven sickles, the two men and one girl left the shop and walked across the street. Nina and Apollo went inside and Severus waited outside.

Nina walked up to the front desk and rang the bell. It was a few minutes before and elderly man got there. Neither jumped when he appeared. "It has been a long time since Elemental Mages have graced these halls, although I am expecting an earth mage sometime soon."

"Hello there sir, my name is Christina Jackson and this is Morgan Ross, we would greatly appreciate it if you don't tell anyone about our statuses as Mages unless we tell you it's okay." Mr. Ollivander nodded and smiled.

"Of course young one, I never reveal my customers' secrets. Now am I correct to assume that you are the one I am fitting for a wand?" Nina nodded her head. "Well then, which hand do you use?"

"I'm ambidextrous sir," Nina replied.

"Ah, I believe I may have the perfect wand for you." Mr. Ollivander went into the back of the store and came back carrying a pale yellow box. "Here we are, 13 inches, white pine, and the core is the hair of a pegasus." Nina gingerly took the wand and made a graceful sweep with it. Sparkles trailed from the end of it and Nina and Apollo chuckled at the irony. "Perfect, that will be seven galleons." Nina handed the money over and waved, smiling sweetly at Mr. Ollivander.

"It was nice meeting you sir, have a nice day."

"You as well young one," Ollivander smiled back.

Apollo waved and grabbed Nina's hand, leading her outside and back to Professor Snape. "I Need to apparate you back now, there is a staff meeting at Hogwarts, to get to the train, Miss Jackson, you simply run through the barrier between platforms nine and ten in Kings Cross Station. That's in London. With a loud CRACK, Nina and Apollo were once again in Nina's home. Apollo looked at his watch.

"Uh oh, I got to go meet Di, see you soon Sparkles."

"Bye Morgie, see you later!" NIna called after him. "Tell Di I said hi."

"'Kay," Apollo called back before disappearing from sight. Nina grabbed her things, which Severus had made feather light for her, and raced upstairs to tell Percy of the days events.

**I haven't decided yet if Nina will have more than one familiar, we'll all just have to wait and see how this story plays out. Next chapter, you get to see more Mage powers and the Hogwarts' Express! Until next time.**


	7. Chapter 6: The Hogwarts Express

**I have been relieved of babysitting duty and honestly have nothing better to do at the moment than type this so type I shall.**

Chapter Six: The Hogwarts Express

On September first, Nina was waiting excitedly for Apollo and Artemis to come pick her up to take her to Kings Cross. Percy hugged her goodbye then dashed off, he didn't want to be late with Sally who, reluctantly, hugged Nina goodbye as well to keep Percy from getting suspicious. Upstairs, you could hear Gabe's loud snores.

Nina took out the guitar Apollo gave her and began playing a short melody while she waited. She looked up when she heard clapping. "Wow Nina, you're getting really good," exclaimed Artemis.

"Thanks Di, but I've got a much better song written, I'll play it for you some other time." Nina put the guitar back in its case and strapped it to her back. She grabbed her trunk and Skittles' cage . "C'mon let's go!"

"Okay," Apollo laughed. He took Artemis' hand in one of his own and Nina's free hand in his other one. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the light in the room. They dimmed as Apollo absorbed the light and used it to transport them to Kings Cross.

"Yay, we're here," Nina shouted. She put her things on a trolley and started for the entrance, Artemis and Apollo running behind her. When she got inside, Nina walked **(read ran)** over to the space between platforms 9 and 10. When Artemis and Apollo caught up to her, they both gave her tight hugs, having places to be since they were gods, and Apollo kissed her forehead.

"Here, we made this for you," he said. Nina opened the bag and pulled out a purple photo album. Sparkles was written in cursive above the top and there was a picture of Nina, Artemis, and Apollo on the front. She looked up at Apollo and he continued. "So you'll always have a little piece of us, it goes in chronological order of all the stuff we did together."

Nina threw her arms around her two best friends. "Big word there Morgie, didn't know you knew such big ones. Thank you guys, this means a lot." Apollo pretended to strangle Nina before he and Artemis each gave her one last hug and disappeared out the door.

"-packed with muggles, of course-" Nina heard from behind her.

"Oh, hello there ma'am my name is Nina and judging by the owls and how you just said muggles I'm going to guess that you're a witch." At the plump, red headed woman's nod, Nina carried on, "Just clarifying, but you do get to the platform by running through this barrier right here, correct?" Nina gestured to the barrier she had been studying and the plump woman nodded again.

"A first year dear?" Nina nodded her head. "Not to worry Ron here is one too." Nina smiled at the youngest of the four brothers. "I'm Mrs. Weasley, here, watch Percy do it." The eldest brother, Percy, smiled at Nina and ran through the barrier.

"Thank you Mrs. Weasley," Nina said before running through the barrier after Percy. She dragged her trunk over to the train and sat down in the first empty compartment she came too. She checked her watch. It was 10:45.

Nina's POV

I had 20 minutes to kill so I decided to look through the photo album with Skittles.

_This picture here, is when Di, Morgan, and I went to Mchale's. They've got really good burgers. Oh, and this one is when we were having a jam session in Central park. This one is me and Morgan after a baseball game passed out on the couch in the living room._

_You two are very cute together._

_Skittles!I 'm 11. Plus he's 6 years older than me. And, he would never like a little girl like me that way._

_You never know Nina._

_One more word about this and you're going in your cage._

_But you're not denying it._

_Skittles..._

_Right, sorry Nina._

Their mental conversation was interrupted by a soft, timid, "Do you mind if I sit here?"

"Oh no, not at all I'm Nina Jackson, what's your name?" I asked as I rose to help with the tiny boys trunk.

"I'm Harry, Harry Potter." We kept trying to get the trunk up there.

"Not to seem rude or anything, but aren't you the boy who defeated the Dark Lord, I don't know much about it myself seeing as I'm from a muggle family back in America but I read a little about it."

"Yeah, but I don't remember it." I nodded my head in understanding. "I don't think we can do this by ourselves. How did you get yours up?"

"The professor who took me to Diagon Alley put a feather light charm on it." Harry nodded his head.

"Wat a hand you two?" asked one of the red haired boys from earlier.

"Yes, please," Harry panted.

"Oy, Fred! C'mere and help!"

With the two boys help the trunk was put up with mine.

"Thanks," Harry and I said in unison. Harry pushed the sweaty hair out of his eyes.

"What's that?" said the twin on the left, pointing at a scar on harry's forehead.

"Blimey," said the one on the right. "Are you-"

"He is," said the left one. "Aren't you?" he added.

"What?" asked Harry.

"Harry Potter," the twins sang together.

"Oh him, I mean, yes, I am." I giggled at Harry's words. This got the twins attention.

"You're that firstie from earlier, aren't you?" asked the right twin.

I nodded my head. "Christina Jackson at your service, but most people call me Nina."

"Fred? George? Are you there?"

"Coming, Mom."

With a wave at us, the twins hopped off the train. "I guess there names are Fred and George Weasley," I said to Harry.

"How did you know their last name?" Harry asked me.

"I met them earlier with their mom who introduced herself as Mrs. Weasley." Harry nodded his head and we sat there in silence. Every now and then I would here glimpses of conversation from outside. In my opinion, from what I heard, Mrs. Weasley showed very obvious favoritism.

The door compartment slid open once more and the brother who was supposedly in first year popped his head in. "Anyone sitting there?" he asked pointing to the seat across from me and next to Harry. "Everywhere else is full." Harry and I shook our heads and the boy plopped into the seat.

"Hey, Ron." Fred and George were back. "We're going down the middle of the train - Lee Jordan's got a giant tarantula down there."

"Right," Ron mumbled.

"Nina, Harry," said twin 2, "did we introduce ourselves? Fred and George Weasley. And this is our brother, Ron. See you later, then." Ron, Harry, and I waved our goodbyes and the twins walked away, sliding the door shut.

"Are you really Harry Potter?" said Ron, blurting it out quite rudely in my opinion. At least Fred and George had a little tact. Harry nodded. "Oh-well, I thought it might be one of Fred and George's jokes," Ron said. Ah, that explains it. "And have you really got-you know..." Here is where I tuned out and started looking at the photo album. I miss Morgie and Di already. I miss Perce too.

"Hey Nina, you want something?" I heard Harry ask.

"I looked up from where I must have fallen asleep. "Hmm... You know, I will try some of those bean things." Ron tossed me a pack.

"Be careful with those, when they say every flavor, they mean every flavor. George reckons he got booger-flavored once." I made a face but decided to try one anyway. Mmmmm... Peanut butter fudge, my favorite.

After I swallowed, I grinned, "Peanut butter fudge." Ron tried one.

"Bleaaargh-see? Sprouts." I giggled and tried another one, trying to figure out which flavor it was. I got banana, burnt waffle, pineapple, mushroom, lettuce, blue cheese, salt, and chile pepper. A knock on the door interrupted me from my game. I looked up to see a sad looking boy.

"Sorry," he said, "but have you seen a toad."

When we shook our heads he groaned. "I've lost him, he keeps getting away. Why did you have to get me a toad Great Uncle Alfred."

I giggled but then said, "Maybe he'll turn up." He smiled slightly.

"Thanks, well I better keep searching. If you see him..." When he left I returned to my little game which I let Skittles join in when she sniffed out a rat flavored one for me.

I saw Ron raise his wand when the compartment door slid open again. The toadless boy had returned with a bushy haired girl. Oh my god, she looks like a hedgehog. Bad ADHD. "Has anyone seen a toad, Neville's lost his." I immediately didn't like her. She had an arrogant, snooty voice.

_Can I eat the rodent on her head._ I started laughing when people looked at me I just waved them off.

_No, Skittles, that's her hair, not a rodent. No matter how bushy it is. At least I'm not the only one who thought that._

"I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you." Her voice is too high. It hurts my ears.

"Nina Jackson."

"I'm Ron Weasley," Ronald muttered.

"Harry Potter," Harry said.

"Are you really?" Uh oh, rant time. We should be getting there soon I'm going to go change. I grabbed my robes from my trunk and ran to the lavatory. I stripped myself of my flannel button- up, my white wife beater, and my skinny jeans. Once I changed, I slipped back on my purple converse and headed back to the compartment where Harry and Ron had already changed. Thankfully, Hermione was gone. I spent the remainder of the ride having mental debates with Skittles about what Bath and Bodyworks scents were the best.

**Hope you liked. Honestly I don't like Ron or Hermione. There will be bashing in this story. Harry gets on my nerves too as does Ginny, so expect them to be bashed too, just not as much till much later. In this story I need to make Neville a little manlier, because he will be a demi-god, as will Luna. I have some other people picked out to be demi-gods, but you'll just have to wait to find out who they are. Until next time. Next chapter is the sorting hat.**


	8. Chapter 7: A Mind Reading Hat

**Because from here on out I will be quoting HP and PJO ****_I DON'T OWN EITHER SERIES TWO VERY AMAZING PEOPLE DO I ONLY OWN NINA, SKITTLES(THE OWL NOT THE CANDY), THE PLOT, AND ANYTHING ELSE YOU DON'T_**** RECOGNISE**** Enjoy the chapter**

Chapter Seven: A Mind Reading Hat

Nina's POV

I loved the boat. I always have loved water. It makes me feel more connected to my dad. Hogwarts looked absolutely beautiful. I don't think I've ever seen something this pretty. Professor McGonagall is leading us into the Great Hall to be sorted right now. Ron thinks we're going to have to fight a troll, but that's just stupid. At least 80% of these kids haven't picked up a text book and the teachers totally know that. Oh, look, there's the enchanted sky. I read about it when I was reading Hogwarts: A History so that I wouldn't go into the wizarding world completely clueless. It's so pretty, with the sunset and everything. To think, I'll get to watch the sun rise and set everyday.

Professor McGonagall brought out an old hat and stool, I wonder why.

**Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,**

**But don't judge on what you see,**

**I'll eat myself if you can find**

**A smarter hat than me.**

**You can keep your bowlers black,**

**Your top hats sleek and tall,**

**For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat**

**And I can cap them all.**

**There's nothing hidden in your head**

**The Sorting Hat can't see,**

**So try me on and I will tell you**

**Where you ought to be.**

**You might belong in Gryffindor,**

**Where dwell the brave at heart,**

**Their daring, nerve, and chivalry**

**Set Gryffindors apart;**

**You might belong in Hufflepuff,**

**Where they are just and loyal,**

**Those patient Hufflepuffs are true**

**And unafraid of toil;**

**Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,**

**If you've a ready mind,**

**Where those of wit and learning,**

**Will always find their kind;**

**Or perhaps in Slytherin**

**You'll make your real friends,**

**Those cunning folk use any means**

**To achieve their ends.**

**So put me on! Don't be afraid!**

**And don't get in a flap!**

**You're in safe hands (though I have none)**

**For I'm a Thinking Cap!**

I clapped for the hat. That was a really good song and I'm pretty sure he wrote it. So he sorts us and does it by reading our minds. I should put down my mental shields so he can decide where to sort me. After I disabled the shields Morgan taught me how to create, I heard Ron grumble about George lying to him about the troll. Why did he even believe him about that. I'm going to have to tell the twins that he really believed them.

"Abbott, Hannah."

**HUFFLEPUFF**

"Bones, Susan."

**HUFFLEPUFF**

"Boot, Terry."

**RAVENCLAW**

"Brocklehurst, Mandy."

**RAVENCLAW**

"Brown, Lavender"

**GRYFFINDOR**

"Bulstrode, Millicent."

**SLYTHERIN**

"Finch-Fletchley, Justin."

**HUFFLEPUFF**

"Finnigan, Seamus."

**GRYFFINDOR**

"Granger, Hermione."

**GRYFFINDOR**

"Jackson, Christina." I took a deep breath and walked up to the stool. I carefully sat down and allowed the hat to drop over my eyes.

_Ah, a mage, and you don't know of what else you inherited from your father do you?_

_I never met my father he was lost at sea sir._

_You will meet him someday in the next year or two child._

_Really?_

_Yes, now let's sort you. Your knowledge would help you greatly in Ravenclaw, but that is not the house for you. You are also very sneaky a good trait for Slytherin, but those two are not your dominant traits. Now, let's see. Ah, very kind and compassionate. And you will do anything for those you consider family. Hufflepuff would suit you well, but using your gift of prophetic sight I can see that Voldemort will win the second war if you are placed there. Besides of which, your bravery is much more there than anything else so..._

**GRYFFINDOR**

I heard the hat shout the last part and jumped up, placing it on the stool, and walking over to the clapping table. I sat down next to Fred and George. When I looked up at the staff table, I saw Professor Snape give me a slight nod, his lips curved up slightly. "Wow Jackson," I heard Fred comment. I turned to him and he said, "You got on Snape's good side that's impressive especially for a Gryffindor." I giggled.

"Thanks, Fred. He's the one who took me to Diagon Alley." And everyone who meets my family gains soft spot for me and my brother, I added silently.

"How did you know I was Fred," asked Fred.

"You're skin is darker and George has more freckles," I said before turning back to the sorting.

I smirked when I heard George say, "Our own mother lives with us and can't tell the difference and here Nina is after meeting us twice and she can tell us apart perfectly and tell us what the differences are. Just wow!"

"Longbottom, Neville."

**GRYFFINDOR**

I waved Neville over. "Hey," he breathed out. "The hat told me you were a Water Mage. I'm an Earth Mage. He said you could help me train my powers because I don't know any other Mages." I nodded at Neville. I honestly love helping people, except my mother and Gabe. I once more turned back to the sorting, thinking of becoming friends with Fred, George, and Neville.

"Malfoy, Draco."

I could instantly tell this kid would make fun of me for being a muggleborn and because I don't have a dad. Let's hope he doesn't find that out.

**SLYTHERIN**

"Nott, Theodore."

**SLYTHERIN**

"Patil, Padma"

**RAVENCLAW**

"Patil, Parvati"

**GRYFFINDOR**

Parvati sat across from. "I wish my twin were in this house," she sighed.

"It could be worse," I said, hoping to make her feel better. When she looked up at me, I added, "My twin brother goes to a boarding school in America." Everyone looked at me with sympathy, but I just shrugged it off.

"Potter, Harry." The hall became silenced. I rolled my eyes. Get Over the poor boy will you. He sat there a good while before being sorted into...

**GRYFFINDOR**

Everyone else flew over my head as Harry sat down and joined the conversation. I looked up in time to hear...

"Thomas, Dean."

**GRYFFINDOR**

"Turpin, Lisa."

**RAVENCLAW**

"Weasley, Ron."

**GRYFFINDOR**

"Zabini, Blaise."

**SLYTHERIN**

I've heard some bad stuff about the Slytherins but they don't all seem bad. Those girls, Tracy and Daphne actually seem decent. Anyways, it's not like it's their fault they were raised with prejudiced beliefs. Oh, look, Headmaster Dumbledore is speaking. "Welcome! Welcome to our new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!'

Well that was rather odd. Suddenly, food appeared on the table. Gotta love magic. I picked up a fork and dug in. Those magic beans seemed like forever ago. Do you think if I planted them they would grow into a beanstalk. Bad brain, I hate ADHD. Focus on not paying attention to anyone trying to talk to you and seeing how annoyed it gets them. Except Fred, George, and Neville, they're cool.

"I don't think I've introduced myself?" I heard someone say. I looked up to see a ghost from what looked like Medieval Times. Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington."

"Ple-" I started to say before being interrupted by Ron.

"I know who you are. My brothers told me about you-you're Nearly Headless Nick!" Nina saw Fred, George, and Percy roll their eyes at each other and then stare at each other in shock. They must not agree very often.

"I would prefer you call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-" he began before being cut off. I gave him a look of empathy and he smiled warmly at me.

"Nearly Headless? How can you be nearly headless?" Seamus interrogated. I decided to help Sir Nicholas out.

"When there is only a small flap of skin connecting your neck to your head. I'm sure Sir Nicholas would show you if you asked him too. If you don't mind me asking, sir, why did someone try to cut your head off, but then not finish the job?"

Sir Nicholas smiled at me again before pulling his head to one side. It was rather fascinating. All of the other first years were disturbed. "I would love to tell you the story sometime, young one, but first why don't you all tell me your names."

"I'm Christina Jackson."

Later on, during desert, everyone was talking about their parentage. "I'm half-and-half. Me dad's a muggle. Mom didn't tell him she was a witch till after they were married. Bit of a nasty shock for him." Everyone laughed except me and Neville.

"It's not funny." Everyone started staring at me. "Seamus' dad could have left his mom or turned abusive. You have to think of all the outcomes." I was thinking of Professor Snape when I said that. While in Diagon Alley, he told Morgan and I about how his father turned abusive when he found out that his mother and him were magical. He smiled at me again.

"What about you," Hermione asked me in that piercing voice of hers. "I'm a muggleborn."

"I don't know," I said, sadly. "My father was forced to leave before I was born and my mother never talks about him. I assume I'm muggleborn seeing as my mother is a muggle, but I honestly have no clue." Everyone gave me sympathetic looks. "I don't take pity," I growled out. Although Fred and Neville offered me one arm hugs. I accepted those. Hey, I may not take pity, but I grew up as a neglected child. I'll always be ready for hugs. Unless it's by an enemy, then they might stab me in the back. Again with the ADHD.

I listened to Dumbledore's speech. I also enjoyed the singing of the school song.

**Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,**

**Teach us something please,**

**Whether we be old and bald,**

**Or young with scabby knees,**

**Our heads could do with filling**

**With some interesting stuff,**

**For now they're bare and full of air,**

**Dead flies and bits of fluff,**

**So teach us things worth knowing,**

**Bring back what we've forgot,**

**Just do your best, we'll do the rest,**

**And learn until our brains all rot.**

I stood up when he told the prefects to take us to our dorms. I grinned when I realized that Percy and his partner were taking us the long way to show us more of the hallways. I grinned. Now I won't get too lost. Gotta love being an eidetic. "Caput Draconis," I heard Percy say. That must be the password. The portrait swung open and we all tumbled inside. Percy directed the girls up the left staircase.

I saw my trunk at the foot of the bed by the window. Instead of my initials written there, Sparkles was written on the lid with purple glitter. "OMG, that is so cute, but why did you get it like that?" Lavender and Parvati squealed. I laughed at their bubbly personalities.

"My friend got my trunk for me, I was getting the books. Sparkles is his nickname for me."

"Oooo, do you have a crush on him?" I started gaping at them like an open fish. Even Hermione seemed slightly interested.

"No, first of all, we're 11, second of all he's been my best friend since I was 8, third reason, he's six years older than me."

Lavender and Parvati pouted slightly before beginning to bounce on their beds. Hermione lost the little bit of interest she had and plopped down on her bed. I rolled her eyes and started pinning up pictures on my wall. There were some of me and my brother, me and Di, me, Di, and Morgan, and most of them were of just me and Morgan. I grinned at my handiwork. It was the perfect collage. Now if only this room was purple and silver instead. I grabbed my wand from my trunk and flicked it, turning my section purple and silver. I nodded my head at the perfection. It was like a mini version of my bedroom. "Do that to our spaces too," Lavender and Parvati begged me.

I grinned, "Same colors?" When they nodded their heads, I flicked my wand and changed their sections to match mine. The only different one was Hermione's because I changed the extra bed to match too. "Do you want to math too, Hermione?" I asked politely.

She scoffed. "You're all showing no house pride. What's wrong with red and gold."

"Simple," I started off. "I hate red. And McGonagall is our head of house and she was wearing Slytherin colors. Percy told me that they are Gryffindors' worst enemies."

"What about gold," Hermione tried to fight back.

"I like it just as much as I like silver, but gold doesn't match purple as well."

"Yay," Lavender said. "You're good with color schemes.

I smiled at her. "Girl, you don't know color schemes till you've talked to me." A tapping at the window interrupted our conversation. "Skittles!" I yelled, jumping up to open the window for my owl.

_Hello Nina._

"Why did you name her Skittles," asked Parvati.

"They're my all time favorite candy, especially the blue ones."

"I've never heard of them," sniffed Hermione grumpily. Lavender and Parvati shook their heads to say they hadn't either. I beckoned everyone over to my trunk and they all sat in a semicircle around me. I pulled a king sized bag of skittles from my trunk and poured everyone a handful, yes even the owl.

"Okay, so don't tell anyone about my skittles stash. My mother doesn't like me eating them because of my ADHD." Everyone nodded. "Well, what are you waiting for, eat." We all dug into the candy. When we were done I got an amazing idea. "Hey guys, wanna dye the tips of Skittles wings the color of skittles?"

"Yes!" was the answer given by everyone, including Skittles. I took out my wand and flicked it. Perfect.

**Hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!**


	9. Chapter 8: Classes Yuck!

**I would like to thank Grey-Rain-Cloud for reviewing my story. I never really liked Hermione, Ron, or Ginny for that matter. Hermione was always too bossy, Ginny is too much of a fan girl, and Ron is basically another Pettigrew. Harry is constantly annoying me, so I will be bashing him too. Mild Harry and Ron bashing will be in two chapters and during the chapter with the troll, Ron will be majorly bashed. When I get to the Percy Jackson section, Annabeth will be bashed because she is so much like Hermione. Many gods will be bashed. I also like the Lavender and Parvati part, I feel like they are underestimated and should be given more credit. There's a lot more to them. Well enjoy the chapter with Snape and Nina although there will be a little of the Skittles Trio(I'm going to call Lavender, Parvati, and Nina that so I don't always have to type their names)Light Bashing**

Chapter Eight: Classes; Yuck!

Nina woke up to the sun rising that morning. She poked and prodded the other three girls awake and got ready swiftly. She ran ran downstairs and when she got to the Great Hall she lay back on a bench watching the rest of her favorite time of day. For some reason the sun always reminded her of Morgan. 'Maybe because of his personality,' she thought. Nina loved the way the colors would merge together in the sunrise and sunset. When the sun was fully in the sky, Lavender and Parvati had joined her. She sat up straight as the two sat across from her. "Let's have a girl's night every Friday," the two said in unison.

"Totally," Nina grinned. To her, it sounded like a great idea. "I'll bring the candy. And we don't have to worry about running out because Morgan, the friend I was telling you about, promised to send me candy on the first of every month." All three girls squealed. When Hermione got there she rolled her eyes.

"Look the mails coming," Nina exclaimed. Skittles came down, showing off the colorful tips of her wings. All of the girls laughed as she landed. Skittles stole a corn muffin from Nina's plate. "I knew I shouldn't have let my brother feed you that doughnut. Now, you only eat people food and rodents," Nina sighed out loud.

_This stuff is way better than owl pellets, you're crazy if you think I'm going back to that trash. _

Nina laughed and when the girls asked her what Skittles said, she told them. They learned a lot about each other last night and Skittles being Nina's familiar is one of those things.

When Mcgonagall passed out the timetables, Nina was quite happy with it. She had found all of her books rather interesting and had glanced through them all, which to an eidetic was like actually reading the books.

Nina had no trouble finding anything and remembered exactly where everything was because of her excellent memory. She had even learned at what time a staircase would be in a certain place and to where it would be going. Nina also found the ghosts to be very helpful. When she did get lost they would help her by telling her in which direction to go or where she was. Even Peeves helped her if she asked politely. He was willing to help anyone as long as they asked politely and weren't trying to get them thrown out of the castle. Filch, the one trying to throw Peeves out of the castle,was rather unhelpful and just yelled at her for tracking dust.

Fred and George were always helping her with everything from homework to how to get to classes quicker to where the kitchens were so that she could thank the house elves. She considered them, Neville, Lavender, and Parati her closest friends. She had met Padma and become quite close with her as well. She was okay with Ron and Harry, but didn't like Hermione very much because Hermione was always rude to her. Peeves had noticed this and was really bad with his pranking of her and the slytherins who were mean to her because of her muggleborn status.

Astronomy was one of Nina's favorite classes, not only did she love the myths behind the constellations, but they also reminded her of Diane. For some reason the moon, sun, and stars brought around thoughts of her two closest friends and she couldn't figure out why. Herbology was fun for her because she could feel and sense the water within the plants. It was Neville's best subject seeing as he is an Earth Mage. He had greatly improved his earthen magic. One of the most interesting classes for Nina was History of Magic, she loved how a ghost taught it and how you could learn so much about the present and the future through the past. Charms was always fun because of the silliest things some charms did.

Transfiguration was good one because the magic was so complex. They took a lot of complicated notes and Nina copied them down just incase it was a grade. Afterwards, everyone was given a match and asked to turn it into a needlestick. Nina achieved success on her first try. Professor McGonagall was so amazed she awarded Gryffindor 20 House Points and gave Nina a rare smile and an even rarer compliment, "Someday, you will be one of the greatest witches out there if you carry on this way." At the end of the class, Hermione was the only other person who managed to change their match, even though hers had just turned silver. She also got a rare smile, but no points or compliments. Hermione was very jealous of this, used to being the best at everything. She was now second best and it was always to Nina.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was not a class Nina enjoyed and was the only class she didn't like. She supposed she would like if they had a better teacher. Professor Quirrell always trembled and stuttered and was afraid of his own shadow. Nina wondered why he was hired because Percy said that this was his first year here.

It was Friday and Nina finally got to have Potions. She was looking forward to it because she had gotten a few extra books on the subject, like every other subject, because she loved to learn so much and it had by far been the most interesting.

When the mail arrived Skittles came back with Hagrid's reply. He said yes she could come down to visit him but Harry may also be joining them. Nina was okay with this so she grabbed some toast for Skittles and dug into her oatmeal.

Potions was in the dungeons, so Nina placed a charm on herself to keep her warm. Snape started the class by calling roll and when he got to Nina's he smiled ever so slightly. Nina knew that she was the only one who saw it and the only one who was meant to see it. When he got to Harry's name, he paused, like Flitwick but for different reasons. "Ah, yes, Harry Potter. Our new-celebrity." Nina looked into Snape's eyes and could see that he was pretending to be snarky. He nodded very slightly so that only Nina could see as if reading her mind. The Slytherin trio, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, started laughing.

When Professor Snape gave her a wink during the speech showing that he knew most of the class weren't dunderheads and he was once more pulling an act she started giggling. "Neville perhaps you should work with me, I'll be able to help you and if you work Seamus you're going to melt his cauldron into a blob"

"Thanks, Nina," Neville whispered back.

"Miss Jackson, what on earth could be so important that you feel you must interrupt my class to talk to Longbottom?"

"I'm awfully sorry, Professor, it's just that I'm a prophetic seer and I saw about five minutes into the future just now, I was trying to prevent Neville from accidentally blowing up Seamus' cauldron which will cause everyone in here pain and will cost Seamus a lot of money. I was only trying to help." Snape nodded his head and turned back to the class. He had known exactly what she had been doing, he just hadn't known how. Everyone stared at her, amazed that she hadn't lost the points she'd earned in Transfiguration. Nina just gave them a smirk worthy of Snape.

"Potter!" Snape said out of nowhere. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?" Nina knew the answer and saw that Hermione knew it too. Nina decided to let Hermione answer this one, knowing the girl already hated her and not wanting to cause anymore animosity.

"I don't know, sir," said Harry. Nina rolled her eyes, that's why you're supposed to at least look through your books so you can recognize these things.

"Tut, tut-fame clearly isn't everything. Let's try again. Where would you look if I told you to find a bezoar?"

"I don't know, sir." Hermione was now standing, attempting to get Snape's attention.

"Thought you wouldn't open a book before coming, eh, Potter? What is the difference, Potter, between monkshood and wolfsbane?" Snape was still completely ignoring Hermione, much to the Slytherins' and Nina's amusement.

"I don't know, I think Hermione does though, why don't you ask her?" Many people laughed at this comment, but Nina did not. You shouldn't talk to Professors like that unless they were completely evil like Nina had seen them getting in fifth year, unfortunately there was no way to change that because Nina didn't know the events leading up to that.

Nina's POV

"Miss Jackson, perhaps you know the answers?"

"Yes, Professor, in order, the answers are the Draught of Living Death, in the stomach of a goat, and they are the same plant, which also goes by the name aconite."

"Very good, Miss Jackson. Five points to Gryffindor." Nina smiled slightly at that. "Miss Granger sit down. Well, why didn't you all copy that down. I expect all of you to copy that down, except for Miss Jackson."

"Sir, why doesn't she have to copy that down?" asked Draco Malfoy.

"Because, Mr. Malfoy, not only does she obviously know the information, she is an eidetic meaning everything she ever experiences is permanently etched into her brain and not even the most powerful obliviate could make her forget it, 5 points from Slytherin for questioning me." Once again everyone was gaping at Nina. Not only had she gained Gryffindor points in Snape's class, but she had been the main cause of Slytherin losing points in Snape's class.

**Hope you liked the chapter. Still deciding whether or not to make Snape a demi-god or not. And write a comment if you think you know who Neville's godly parent is. Your hint is that she's his mom. Until later!**


	10. Chapter 9: Hagrid and the Hospital Wing

**A shout out to Pricilla Harkness, IAmTheTaintedAngel, and Grey-Rain-Cloud for guessing who Neville's mom is! Good job you guys, it is her Roman form. I have decided to make Severus a grandson of Hades because IAmTheTaintedAngel wanted him to be a descendant of Hades and Grey-Rain-Cloud wanted him to be a legacy so there you go guys, you won't hear about it for a while because Nina needs to learn about the gods with Percy. I have decided that Sirius Black will be a demi-god. He and Severus only pretended to hate each other. Remus will know about demi-gods but not that Sirius and Severus are descendants of the gods. I will put up a poll with who Sirius' godly parent is. It is very important to the plot that he is one and I can't make Sev seem like a good guy without it. There will be Skittle trio fluff and a letter to Artemis and Apollo to fill in the space.**

Chapter Nine: Hagrid and the Hospital Wing

At ten to three Nina started to head down to see Hagrid. Once she got outside, she started to skip. It took about three minutes to get down to the hut and when she got Nina pounded on the door with all her might, which wasn't much seeing as she was 4'7", rather short for her age. A huge dog was barking in the background. When Hagrid opened the door, Nina was greeted with a faceful of dog. She dropped to the ground and crawled between the dog's legs. She popped up behind Hagrid. "Nina! Where'd ya go?" Hagrid called. Nina giggled and poked him behind his knee. He jumped and flipped around. "Who did tha'" he asked before looking down.

Nina's POV

I giggled when I freaked Hagrid out so much. It's funny seeing someone so big jump so much. "Hi Hagrid," I said while waving.

"How'd ya get there, NIna?"

"I crawled underneath the dog. What's his name?" i asked, scratching the boarhound behind his ears. If there's one thing I know it's animals.

"Tha's Fang. He looks a right piece a work, but he don't gotta violent bone in his body."

I smiled. "Well he's very sweet, aren't you my big baby," I started cooing at the beast. I looked up and blushed when I realized what I was doing. I rubbed the back of my neck, very embarrassed. Hagrid laughed.

"Promise me yeh'll take Care of Magical Creatures in yer third year, will ya."

"What's that Hagrid?" I asked, plopping myself down in a chair with Fang's head on my lap. His tongue was lolling out of his mouth and getting drool all over my jeans that I had changed into. Oh well, nothing a good spell won't fix.

"Ar, forget you're muggleborn,what with all the stuff ya know, Nina. Care o' Magical Creatures is just tha', learning how to care for magical creatures. Ya can't take it 'til third year though. Some o' those creatures can be right dangerous fer kids. 'Though you could probably take 'em, Nina." I giggled and Hagrid and I talked about the class, which I was definitely going to take in third year, while Hagrid made tea.

When Hagrid had finished the tea, Ron and Harry had just arrived. Hagrid put it down in front of us and I continued to scratch Fang behind the ears while the boys caught up. I picked up Hagrid's copy of the Daily Prophet and began reading. "Wow!" I exclaimed. Everyone turned to stare at me. "Someone broke into Gringotts."

TIME CHANGE

The first time I actually talked to Malfoy was on the following Thursday. We had flying lessons with the Slytherins. The Skittles Trio groaned when they saw the notice. "I hate the Slytherins," groaned Parvati. "They think they're so much better than us just because they're all pureblooded."

"I know right," I sighed. "Incase either of you care, I'm going to make a complete fool out of myself during breakfast. I'm probably going to lose the 25 house points I gained too. Just so you know." The three girls started laughing together. I got an evil smirk on her face and started running towards the Great Hall. Everyone who saw the smirk started running after me knowing I had something big in store.

When I got to the the Great Hall almost everyone was there. Yes, even the teachers. Well, here goes nothing. I jumped onto the Gryffindor table and yelled at everyone, "Yo, shut up I'm trying to say something. Great, now that I have everyone's attention, I am a mudblood and I'm proud of it! Take that you prejudiced idiots! " I pointed my wand into the air and caused a ribbon to shoot out of it that spelled out what I just said in purple manuscript. At first everyone just stared at me but then, the other two-thirds of the Skittles trio stood up and started clapping. They were followed by the twins, Neville, Lee Jordan, and the Gryffindor quidditch team. Then came the whole house of Hufflepuff then the Gryffindors followed by the Ravenclaws and even a few Slytherins. See not all of them are awful.

"Miss Jackson," uh oh, it's Flitwick, "get down from there. I gulped and hopped off the table.

"I'm sorry Professor, when's my detention?"

"Detention?" Flitwick asked me, outraged. I winced. "10 points for standing up for yourself and others, you are a true Gryffindor." I stared at him in shock. "And another 15 for performing a sixth year charm perfectly." I probably would have passed out right then if Lav and Vati hadn't caught me. They held me in their arms, jumping up and down. I looked up at the Teacher's Table to see most of them cheering me on too. I did pass out then.

I woke up in the Hospital Wing. I opened my eyes to see Lav and Vati's faces. They squealed when they saw that I was awake. "OMG, did you see Malfoy's face when you did that?" I nodded my head, laughing at the family heir's gobsmacked face. It was really funny.

"That was the best," Vati continued. "I can't believe you did that, it was the bravest thing I've ever seen. We're really lucky to have you as a friend Nina." Lav nodded her agreement.

"We love you, Nina," they said in unison.

"I love you guys too," I said tearing up because after only knowing me for weeks they already felt so strongly about me. They're like the wizarding version of Morgie and Di. The rest of the time, they filled me in on what happened with the flying lesson. Malfoy was once again totally pwned. I was cleared in time to go to dinner.

When we got to the Great Hall, Parvati, Lavender, and I walked in arm and arm. As we entered, a lot of the people who were clapping for me this morning started clapping for me again. I smiled and walked with Parvati and Lavender to the Gryffindor table where we started laughing about how yesterday a plant blew up in Professor Sprout's face with Neville. It was looking to be a great year. That night I decided to right my first letter to Morgan and Diane. I had already written one to Percy.

_Dear Morgie and Di,_

_I miss you guys so much. At first I thought it was going to be torture without you guys and my brother, but it's not all that bad. I've made some really good friends. My two best friends here are Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil. They're both in Gryffindor House, each year is sorted into four houses depending on the student's main characteristics, with me. Gryffindor is the home of the brave and the chivalrous. They are absolutely amazing. Another friend is Neville Longbottom. And guess what, he's an Earth Mage! How insane is that? Fred and George Weasley are my other friends. They're two years ahead and the pranksters of Hogwarts. Then, there's Harry and Ron. They're best friends. Harry's okay but Ron is really lacking tact. Hermione Granger is really rude to me just because I'm better than her in all of our classes. Like I said to her, "It's not my fault I'm eidetic." Then, there's Seamus Finnegan and Dean Thomas. They're alright but I don't know them too well. Those are the Gryffindors. I'm also kind of friends with Vati's twin Padma, but she's in another house so we don't see each other too often._

_I love most of my teachers. Professor Snape, the one who took me to Diagon Alley, is my favorite. He pretends to be all snarky because it gives his students more motivation. They just don't realize that. He teaches Potions. I also like Transfiguration with Professor McGonagall because the magic is so complex. Professor Flitwick teaches charms which is fun because of the ridiculous things charms do. I also like History of Magic with Professor Binns, he's a ghost. It's so cool how we can learn about our present and the future by looking back into the past. It helps having a teacher who has experienced some of these things. It's really cool. Herbology with Professor Sprout is cool too. It's Neville's best subject, obviously. I missed the flying lesson with Madam Hooch._

_Today, during breakfast, I erm, kind of jumped on the table and shouted that I'm a mudblood and proud! Take that you prejudiced purebloods! I seriously thought I was going to get detention but instead I got House Points! When I saw the teachers applauding me I passed out. When I woke up in the hospital wing, Lav and Vati told me all about the flying lesson. Harry became seeker, that's a position on the quidditch team, for Gryffindor!_

_I've had a lot of fun here, and it feels like I will have fun here in the future. I miss you guys, Bye!_

_Love,_

_Sparkles_

**Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Next question is for you to guess Luna's godly parent. No hints for her. It makes my day when you guys review so please do so. Thanks!**


	11. Chapter 10: Midnight Duels

**Thanks again to those reviews, here is the real chapter 10. Grey-Rain-Cloud and IAmTheTaintedAngel you were right and yes she will also be Roman. To IAmTheTaintedAngel-I'm always open to suggestions and if you have any, post it in a review or pm me. To Pricilla Harkness-I try to update as soon as I have a chapter done. I write so many chapters at once because I don't want to lose my flow of ideas although I think I'm doing pretty good with this one. I'm following the book and I'm half done with SS already. My goal is to have Nina and Apollo together by August. They are going to get together at the end of Last Olympian so we'll see. TO Grey-Rain-Cloud-I know what you mean about it being hard to chose who to be Siri's godly parent. That's why I'm asking you guys. Thanks for the song, I'll check it out tomorrow. There is a poll on my profile. Pretty please with a cherry on top check it out and vote! I don't know when the poll will close but I'd say in about a week.**

Chapter Ten: The Midnight Duel

"Having a last meal, Potter? When are you getting the train back to the Muggles?" the Skittles trio heard from down the table. Malfoy was always bugging the Gryffindors.

"You're a lot braver now that you're on the ground and you've got your little friends with you," Harry retorted. Nina sighed she had to go stop this before it got too bad. She motioned for Parvati and Lavender to stay seated, then went over to the five idiots.

"Is there a problem here, boys?" she asked coolly.

"You're one to talk, Jackson, you fainted like a girl yesterday," Malfoy snapped.

"I am a girl, Dunderhead," Nina rolled her eyes. Malfoy just glared at her before picking his earlier argument with Harry and Ron.

"Crabbe is my second. Midnight alright? We'll meet in the Trophy Room; that's always unlocked."

"You're having a wizard's duel?" Nina asked them, exasperated. At their nod she rolled her eyes and walked away.

"We heard them talking about the wizard's duel," Lavender said, quietly. "Weasley is the one who agreed for Potter. He's such an idiot. And Potter is too for not trying to stop them. Oooh, that's Nina's thinking face."

"I'm going to try to talk them out of it. I'd ask you guys to come to, but the two baboons know me better and have a better chance of listening to me." The Skittles trio all agreed with Nina's plan.

Twenty past eleven found Nina sitting on the couch downstairs waiting for Harry and Ron to come down. She didn't notice Hermione doing the same thing. Nor did Hermione notice her for that matter. About ten minutes later, both girls heard Ron and Harry coming down the stairs.

Nina's POV

"I can't believe you're going to do this, Harry," I heard from my left. Great it's Granger. Fate just loves me. I stood up to make myself known and Hermione glared at me.

"Harry, she's right. You don't need to be a prophetic-seer to know this is a trap set up by Malfoy. I have seen what will happen. It is a trap."

"You have no proof you're supposed gift really works. Therefore, I don't believe you," Hermione growled at me.

"You realize you just contradicted yourself," I snorted at her before following the two dipwads who had failed epically at sneaking off. Oh no, poor Neville got stuck out here. "Neville," I whispered quietly, shaking him awake. Once he had his eyes open, I said, "Whatcha doin' out here?

"I forgot the password," he said sheepishly.

I smiled at him. "That's easy," I said turning around. "It's pig snout." But the portrait didn't open. The stupid Fat Lady wasn't there. "Well, let's go see how well my vision turned out then," I said grabbing Neville by the Trophy Room. Everyone began to follow me. I led them through many twists and turns and down many long hallways. I had wandered at night last Thursday and memorised where every teacher was at every particular time. I quickly grabbed Ron's arm to keep him from going down one hallway. "Pince is down there," I hissed at him, leading them quietly and quickly past the hallway.

When we got to the Trophy Room I rolled my eyes. "See, no Malfoy. I was right, Granger."

"Pure luck, Jackson." I rolled my eyes at her arrogance. Wow, I'm doing that a lot. Stupid ADHD. Suddenly, we heard Mrs. Norris meow and footsteps. Even better, Filch.

"Sniff around my sweet, they might be lurking in a corner."

Let me just say, I was never more happy that I trained for Morgan and Di for that marathon. I easily outran everyone else and shockingly, Neville was the closest behind me. Hermione was lagging. Girl probably never exercised in her life. All she does is read. There's more to life than books.

"Wandering around at midnight,Ickle Firsties? Tut, tut, tut. Naughty, naughty you'll get caughty." I turned around to see Peeves. He won't rat us out if he sees me. I started running back.

"Not if you don't give us away, we won't."

"Should tell Filch, I should. It's for your own good, you know."

"Back of Peeves, they're with me."

"My bad, Nina. I shall distract Filch, I shall." With a cackle, Peeves flew off towards Filch. I beckoned everyone forward and we started running. I sighed as Hermione ran up the corridor leading up to the forbidden room.

"Alohomora!" I groaned but followed everyone else in. I'll admit, I was pretty eager to see what was in the-oh. Nevermind. It's a cerberus. Oh, look, it's standing on a trap door. Thanks ADHD. We fell backward as Harry pushed open the door. I took the lead once more and led everyone back to the common room.

"Where on earth have you all been?" asked the Fat Lady. I just shook my head.

"Tell you tomorrow, sleep now, Pig Snout please." The Fat Lady smiled at my politeness and swung open.

"By the way," I said before entering my dorm, "it was standing on a trapdoor." When I got changed, I jumped on the massive pile of purple and silver pillows that Lav and Vati were camping out on. I explained to them what had happened and then fell asleep.

The next morning, Skittles flew in, dropped an envelope and a pack of Skittles on my lap (It was October first), and stole my cinnamon bun. If I didn't love that owl so much she would be stuffed right now. I saw Lav and Vati grin at the skittles box, Hermione roll her eyes at it, and all of the boys look confused. I opened the letter.

_Dear Nina,_

_I miss you. It gets so boring with only Morgan to talk to. I really am glad you're having fun though. I can't wait to meet your new friends. You simply must take them to Benny's. If they love Skittles they'll adore pizza. Gotta love American foods. FYI when you get back Morgie might jump on you, he went a little more insane than he already was without you. You better write back soon._

_Love,_

_Di_

_My Dearest Sparkles,_

_It has been positively dreadful without you old chap. I have been reduced to talking like a gentlemen since Di is such a drab bore. It was so much more pleasant when you were here. Di wants to take me to a psychiatrist. I'm not that insane-yet. Now that I'm done being a drama-queen, just a warning, those new friends of yours better not have replaced me. Just saying, I'm one of a kind. Di wants to take them out for Benny's. Whatcha say, you, me, Di, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, and pizza. Write soon Sparkles._

_Your BEST best friend,_

_Morgie_

**_Peace out guys, I'm going to sleep now so the next chapter won't be posted for like another 10 hours because I still need to write it. Good night._**


	12. Chapter 11: Eek! A Troll

**This chapter took me longer than the others to write so sorry about the slight delay. This is the chapter dedicated to Grey-Rain-Cloud. Here's your song request. Nina sings it to Hermione to make her feel better. So far Hermes, Apollo, and Aphrodite are tied to be Siri's parents. Keep voting people! Thank you Alinthrada GamerGirl for your review. It means a lot that you think so highly of my story. There will be Ron bashing and a little Hermione bashing at the beginning. Neville will be in this chapter a little and we have Nina's first monster fight. This chapter will be important later on. I do not own It'll Be You by Daniel Wesley.**

Chapter Eleven: Eek! A Troll

The Skittles trio were laughing so hard they had to hold each other up when they saw Malfoy's face the next morning. Who knew a human could look so much like a gorilla? When they sat down they quickly started thinking over what was underneath the trap door.

"It has to be something valuable or dangerous because otherwise, why hide it?" Lavender started the conversation.

"I heard Harry and Ron talking about something when I went to visit Hagrid. You know how someone broke into Gringotts on July 31?" At her friends nods, Christina continued," Well, Harry said that he and Hagrid had removed the thing from that vault earlier that day. It has to be whatever they removed."

"I don't see what else it could be," Parvati said. The three girls looked up and saw Harry and Ron talking in hushed whispers. "Five knuts say they're trying to figure out what's down there and failing."

"I'm not stupid enough to take that bet," Lavender giggled. Nina looked over towards the rest of the first years and saw that Hermione and Neville showed no interest in finding out what was under that trap door. Neville honestly didn't want to go anywhere near that room.

The only good thing about their late night endeavor was that Hermione wasn't speaking to Nina (and Lav and Vati because of their connection to her), Harry, or Ron. Lavender, Parvati, and Nina all agreed that it was one of the top 5 things on the Greatest Things That Have Ever Happened to Us list. A few of the later owls flew in and one dropped a parcel in front of Harry. Nina sighed, it was a broom. She could just tell by the shape. "A Nimbus Two Thousand," Nina heard Ron moan. She rolled her eyes along with Lavender and Parvati, both having heard Ron as well.

Halloween was the first holiday the girls would be celebrating together. They were very excited and planning to break out the Skittles, even though it was a Tuesday. Nina was excited by the smell of baking pumpkin, having never had a pumpkin pie before. Even better, in Charms they would be making objects fly. Nina was very excited by this. She had always dreamed of flying but had never been given the chance. Now she would be making things fly! Lavender and Parvati were working together and Nina was working with Neville. She didn't mind because Neville was a pretty good friend of hers. "Wingardium Leviosa," she said while giving her wand a nice swish and flick. She made the GAR and O slightly longer like she had picked up Professor Flitwick doing. The feather gently floated about 5 feet into the air.

"Well done, Miss Jackson. You are the first to succeed and on your first try too," Flitwick applauded Nina. She smiled lightly at him and made her feather float back to the surface. "10 points to Gryffindor." Nina grinned at him before beginning to help Neville showing him exactly how she had done it. While working, she overheard Hermione and Ron, who were working together. She felt awful for them both.

"You're saying it wrong. It's Wing-GAR-dium Levi-O-sa, make the GAR nice and long," Hermione snapped.

"You do it, then, if you're so clever," Ron snarled back. Nina smirked and motioned for her friends to turn around and watch. They saw Hermione roll up the sleeves of her robes and pull her wand out.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" Their feather rose up and hovered. It wasn't nearly as high as when Nina had done it, but it was pretty good.

"Oh, well done! Everyone see hear, Miss Granger's done it!" Professor Flitwick cheered. By the end of class the only other people who had gotten it were Lavender, Parvati, Neville (thanks to Nina's aid), and Parvati's twin Padma. Ronald was in a very bad mood at the end of class.

"It's no wonder no one can stand her," the trio plus Neville heard him say, "she's a nightmare, honestly." The four gritted their teeth. They may not like Hermione very much, but that was still uncalled for. They saw her rush past them and knew she had heard. The Skittles trio looked at each other and waved goodbye to Neville before running after her. They followed her all the way to the girls bathroom on the fourth floor. They heard her crying.

"Hermione come out," called Lavender. "Ron's just an idiot."

"Go away, I know you all agree with him."

Parvati was about to say something when Nina shook her head. "C'mon guys, she needs some time to herself. They all nodded.

Later on, instead of going to the feast like she really wanted too, Nina took out her guitar and went to the bathroom to look for Hermione. She remembered how it hurt to have no friends or no one to turn to but your family. When she got there she saw Hermione sitting in a corner, wiping her eyes. "Come to make fun of me, have you? Going to gloat about something else you're better at than me at?" Nina shook her head and sat down across from Hermione. She began tuning her guitar. She then began strumming a melody.

**Wake Up Eyes The Sun Is Here**

**Cloudy Days Are Nowhere Near**

**Does It Feel The Same For You**

**To Mean So Much To Me**

**I'm Surprised That No Else**

**Has Come Along And Stole Your Heart**

**There Would Be Nothing More For Me**

**If You Were Never There**

**It'll Be You When The Money Is Right**

**It'll Be You When The Bank Is Tight**

**It'll Be You When The Sun Comes Up**

**It'll Be You When The Day Turns Night**

**Quiet Girl From The Old Country**

**Sweet Lit Eyes That Hold Me In**

**Skin So Soft That You'd Have To Touch**

**To Feel The Way I Do Ooo Ooo**

**I'm Surprised That No One Else**

**Has Come Along And Stole Your Heart**

**There Would Be Nothing More For Me**

**If You Were Never There**

**It'll Be You When The Money Is Right**

**It'll Be You When The Bank Is Tight**

**It'll Be You When The Sun Comes Up**

**It'll Be You When The Day Turns Night**

**It'll Be You Cause You're So Damn True**

**It'll Be You No One Does It Like You**

**It'll Be You Who Can Break My Heart**

**It'll Be You Never Be Apart**

**Its Something That I Can't Explain**

**We Were Meant To Be**

**You Make Our Home So Beautiful**

**Theres Nothing More I Need**

**It'll Be You...**

**Wake Up Eyes The Sun Is Here**

**Cloudy Days Are Nowhere Near**

**Does It Feel The Same For You**

**To Mean That Much To Me**

**To Mean That Much To Me**

**It'll Be You When The Money Is Right**

**It'll Be You When The Bank Is Tight**

**It'll Be You When The Sun Comes Up**

**It'll Be You When The Day Turns Night**

**It'll Be You Cause You're So Damn True**

**It'll Be You No One Does It Like You**

**It'll Be You Who Can Break My Heart**

**It'll Be You Never Be Apart**

Nina finished off the song. "Did you write that?" Hermione sniffled. Nina nodded.

"My friend Morgan helped me and I play it whenever I'm feeling sad. It always makes me feel like there is someone out there who cares. You're a really cool girl, Hermione. I think that we'll never truly get along, but we'll having bonding moments like this. Don't listen to Ron, he's a right git. You just haven't found the right people to be your friends yet but trust me, you will. And until then, you'll always have your parents. I only had my brother until I met Morgan and Di. Without him, I don't know what I would have done. It's always nice to have a friend, Hermione, but really all you need is to know that there are people out there who care," Nina finished her mini monologue. Hermione gave her a watery smile.

"Thanks, Chris-" here she froze.

Nina's POV

It felt really good singing again and I'm glad I could help Hermione. She's Stopped crying. When she froze, I followed her line of vision and let out an ear-piercing screech. There was a troll in the bathroom. It smashed a sink and I quickly grabbed a piece of plaster. I jumped up and threw it at the troll. I noticed Harry and Ron doing it too. When did they get here? Bad ADHD. As soon as I finished reprimanding my disorder, I started thanking it. Because of my ADHD, I noticed the smallest details like where to put my feet. I saw Harry jump up onto the troll and drive his wand up its nose. GROSS! I heard Ron shout, "Wingardium Leviosa." Uh oh. The troll's club rose from its hand and Ron dropped it on the troll's head. Nice touch there. The troll fell over, unconscious. I picked up a pipe and crawled over to the troll. I jabbed down where i knew the trolls heart was. I didn't know how long it would be unconscious and I didn't want to find out either. I looked up to see all of the professors staring at me and Professor Quirrell sitting on a broken toilet. To each his own. Professor Snape bent over the troll just as it exploded into gold dust.

"Well, that's definitely dead," he murmured. I giggled. I looked to see that the heart was still there. I just threw up a little in my mouth. "Miss Jackson," he continued. I looked up. "Seeing as you put in the killing blow, the heart rightfully belongs to you."

"Keep it, I'm sure it's useful for something and I don't want to look at it. Snape shook his head at my antics and picked up the heart, wrapping it in some cloth. That thing was the size of my head!

"What on earth were you thinking of?" Professor McGonagall reprimanded us. Knowing Hermione was about to take the fall, I stepped in.

"Hermione overheard someone saying something rude about her earlier, Professor. I came here to help her feel better. Ron and Harry knew we didn't know about the troll and came to warn us. It was really no ones fault."

"Well-in that case...Well, I still say you were lucky, but not many first years could take on a full-grown mountain troll. You each win Gryffindor 5 points. Professor Dumbledore will be informed of this. You may go." We all ran back to the common room where the feast was being finished. I had just become friends with Ron and Harry. The same couldn't be said for Hermione, but we hated each other less now.

I shared the tale with Lav, Vati, and Neville. They were in awe. But the best thing about today would probably be the pumpkin pie. It was just as good as I thought it would be.

**I hope you liked the chapter. Keep the reviews and votes coming. I'm skipping most of the quidditch games just so you know and my goal is to start CoS tomorrow. See ya.**


	13. Chapter 12:MagicBracelet and MagicMirror

**Here's the next chapter. It's got a little bit of Apollo/Nina fluff towards the end but not really. Thank you **  
**Grey-Rain-Cloud for your review. Sally has always seemed too perfect for me. She just doesn't make any mistakes and real moms aren't like that, so I decided to make her OOC. That and I like changing things up as you can see. Hope you enjoy the chapter, I added a little Sally bashing just for you.**

Chapter Twelve: Magic Bracelet and Magic Mirror

The next two months passed quickly for Nina. She saw no point in going home for Christmas, so when Professor McGonagall passed around the list, she checked off no. Why bother going back if Morgie and Di aren't going to be there? In Gryffindor, the only people staying were her, Harry, and the Weasleys. Nina had become quite close with Fred and George and was on speaking terms with Percy. Ron and Harry considered her one of their best friends, but she didn't like them all that much. They really were very idiotic. Fred and George couldn't agree more. With a little help from Nina, the ice on the lake was very thick and she took everyone out ice skating on it. They literally spent the whole day out on the ice. Afterwards, Nina sat in the bathroom on the second floor doing crossword puzzles with Peeves and Moaning Myrtle. Both were surprisingly good at it.

Every now and then, Nina would be in the library looking up things about Nicholas Flamel. She remembered Harry's chocolate frog card with Dumbledore on it saying how Flamel had created the Sorcerer's Stone. But that couldn't be what the object under Fluffy was, could it. Hagrid was actually insane enough to name the small cerberus Fluffy.

On Christmas Eve, Nina helped Hagrid and all the professors decorate the Great Hall. Peeves had caused a crash on the third floor during the decorating process. All the professors rushed off to see what it was and Nina had quickly used her Mage magic to create a bunch of ice sculptures. When the professors got back, she was awarded 10 points for creativity.

Harry, Ron, Nina, Fred, and George had begun plotting ways to get Malfoy expelled. They were very fun to talk about but most wouldn't work. Professor McGonagall caught them doing it and sent them all to bed. Nina could have sworn she saw Professor McGonagall smiling when she left.

The next morning, when Nina woke up, she sorted through her presents. There were presents from Percy, Diane, Morgan, Harry, Ron, Fred and George, Lavender, Parvati, Neville, and even one from Mrs. Weasley. Of course, Sally didn't send her one. Why would she if Percy had no way of knowing if she did or didn't. From Percy, she got a light purple t-shirt saying Keep Calm and Oh, Is That Purple Food. The only way to explain that is one day when Nina was six, Gabe told her there was no such thing as purple food. She slapped him and from that day forth, had gone out of her way to eat purple. It always was her favorite color. Diane got her a bow and arrows, they had gone to an archery range a few times and Nina had loved it. Although she did wonder why they shrunk into charms for a bracelet. The note said that the quiver was charmed to have unlimited arrows. Nina decided to save Morgan's present for last and went on to Harry's. It was a book about charms used for annoying people. There was one in the book that made the person's skin flash different colors for 24 hours. Nina decided to try these out on Malfoy when term started again. Ron had gotten her Cauldron Cakes and Neville got her a never wilting Delilah, her favorite flower. Fred and George got Nina a kit full of pranks from Zonko's, a store in the local wizarding village. Parvati and Lavender chipped in together to buy a full out makeup kit that had everything in it. Mrs. Weasley sent her a hand knitted purple sweater with Sparkles written in beautiful silver cursive across the chest. She guessed Fred and George had told her about the nickname thing.

When Nina opened Morgan's present, she understood Di's present. It was a silver charm bracelet with three charms (plus the ones Di gave her, it would be four). One that would magically create whatever thing she needed for first aid and another that would magically create whatever instrument she wanted. When she was done with the stuff, all she had to do was think done and it would disappear. The last charm would create whatever food she wanted. 'Ha, take that Gump.'

Nina got dressed in a pair of skinny jeans and the Weasley sweater. She put on a pair of silver uggs that matched perfectly. Then, she went on to make up. She put on purple eye shadow and then, very carefully, di her eyeliner and mascara. These were silver. Nina attached the charms to her bracelet and put it on. Then, she walked over to the boys dorms.

She walked in and smiled as the boys jaws dropped while looking at her. "Earth to the dingbats," she said giggling as she waved her hand in front of their faces.

"Y-you look nice, N-Nina," they stammered out together. She rolled her eyes at them and plopped down on a bed.

"Hey, look-Harry and Nina have Weasley sweaters too!" chorused Fred and George together. "You lot haven't got letters on yours. I suppose she thinks you don't forget your name but then again, Nina's got her nickname written on hers. Must not have wanted Nina to forget it. Although, she didn't need to put F and G on ours, we know our names are Gred and Forge."

Nina laughed. "Fred, you're wearing George's sweater and George, you're wearing Fred's." The boys all stared at her in awe of her knowledge.

"And she does it again," Fred said, amazed.

Later that night, Nina was wandering around the halls when something invisible rammed her through a doorway. Said invisible creature's cloak fell off. Harry was lying across Nina's body. He quickly rolled off, stammering his apology. Nina waved him off and stood up, glancing around the room. She looked over at the center of what appeared to be in old classroom. There was a mirror. Nina walked over to it and looked into it. Instead of her reflection, she saw an older version of herself, maybe 18. Morgan was there too. He had his arms wrapped around her from behind. Older Nina's hands were resting on his and there were matching wedding bands on their fingers. Older Nina was heavily pregnant and Morgan's hands were resting on her stomach. He mouthed the words, "She's mine," before kissing older Nina on the top of her head and grinning like an escapee from an insane asylum. "Harry, come look at this," Nina stuttered, moving aside. Harry walked in front of it and told her about how he saw his parents. "That's not what I saw, not that I'm telling you what I saw. I-I'm going to go back." Nina ran from the room, closely followed by an invisible Harry.

A few days later, Harry took her back there. This time, she was underneath the invisibility cloak with him. When they got there, Professor Dumbledore was there and gave them a warning about it. It was the mirror of desire.

Nina's POV

How can that be the mirror of desire. I'm not in love with Morgan. I can't be. He's 6 years older than me and has been my best friend since I was eight. Ugh... Life is so messed up.

**Hope you enjoyed! Keep voting on Siri's godly parent!**


	14. Chapter 13: Dragons and Detentions

**Here's Chapter Thirteen. Thanks for the reviews! To Grey-Rain-Cloud, I thought the crosswords were a nice touch and I need Nina to be friends with both ghosts for future chapters. Thank you to my two other reviewers! Aphrodite and Hermes are now tied for first. I'm actually shocked that no one voted for one of the Big Three but whatever. Lav and Vati will also be demigods and half sisters. Nina gets her second familiar here and has some of her demigod powers revealed. Enjoy!**

Chapter Thirteen: Dragons and Detention

When everyone came back from winter break, they finally found out who Nicholas Flamel was. It was in some stupid book Hermione had found. Turns out it was the Sorcerer's Stone that was hidden underneath Fluffy. Oops. When Nina told Lavender and Parvati, they just started laughing at her. Evil friends.

Hermione, Ron, and Harry were convinced that Snape was trying to get the stone and just needed to know how to get past Quirrell's protection. Nina, however, knew otherwise. She had confronted Snape and told him all she knew on the matter.

Nina's POV

"Of course I'm not trying to get the stone," he nearly shouted. "I'm trying to make sure Quirrell doesn't get it. And whenever I consult Dumbledore about it, he tells me all about his plan to train Potter by letting him figure it out and handle it. The old coot."

I sighed. That man was a menace to society. "He is an idiot," I agreed. Snape smirked and sent me off to Transfiguration.

Later on, Harry, Ron, and Hermione dragged me down to see Hagrid. When we got inside the hut, I immediately started sweating. It was so hot in there! Hagrid had a blazing fire going. Hagrid started telling us off for researching Flamel and the stone.

"Hagrid," I heard Ron say, "that's a dragon egg. That's illegal." I gasped. Maybe Hagrid would let us watch it hatch. That would be awesome. "Where'd you get it, it must of cost you a fortune."

"Won it, actually. Las' night. I was down in the village havin' a few drinks an' got into a game o' cards with a stranger. Think he was quite glad ter be rid of it, ter be honest.

"Could we see it hatch?" I asked Hagrid. He nodded, grinning. Hermione was not as enthusiastic. She began lecturing Hagrid about how he lived in a small, wooden hut. Lav, Vati, and I had visited Hagrid everyday since, helping clear a space for a baby dragon.

A few days after a space had been cleared, Skittles and Hedwig flew in. Each owl had a note from Hagrid. _It's hatching._ Skittles was very interested in what was hatching.

_What is hatching, Nina?_

_Hagrid has a Norwegian Ridgeback egg._

_Ooh, can I come?_

_No, Skittles, dragons eat owls. If it was anything else, you know I'd let you come. I'm sorry._

_That's alright, but take a picture, I'm sure Morgan and Diane would love to see it too._

_You're right, I will. I got to go, classes._

I jumped off and ran to History of Magic. We were learning about when wizards had a war against demigods. The demigods won. They are stronger and have trained to fight all their lives. Most demigods were Elemental Mages too. So no duh they won.

During morning break, the Skittles trio and the Golden trio all ran down to Hagrid's hut. "This is so cool," whispered Parvati as we watched the cracks get bigger and bigger. I nodded my head along with everyone else in agreement. Suddenly, there was a long scraping sound and the egg split open. A wrinkly baby dragon fell out and plopped onto the table. It's so cute!

"Awwwwwwww!" Lav, Vati, and I said in unison. "That is just too cute." He sneezed and the three of us squealed at the sheer cuteness. Hagrid stuck out a finger to pet it and the baby snapped at him.

"Bless him, look, he knows his mommy," said Hagrid. Everyone laughed at that. The dragon looked at me and started crawling towards me. I let my magic spread from my body and incase the creature, just like it had done with Skittles.

_Hi._ I have more than one familiar. Wow. OMG! His mental voice was so cute.

_Hello little one, how are you? My name is Christina, but most people call me Nina._

_Hi Nina, I'm hungry. _I laughed and told Hagrid that the dragon was probably hungry. He nodded his head and quickly pulled out a baby bottle full of milk. I took the bottle and picked up the little dragon, carefully feeding him. Uh oh, Malfoy saw through the gap in the windows.

Over the next few weeks, all of us helped Hagrid with the newly dubbed Norbert. I laughed at this because Norbert had informed me she was a girl. She wasn't at all violent towards me, Lav, or Vati, but she hated Ron, Hermione, and Harry. She liked Hagrid well enough, but he wasn't her favorite. Norbert had grown three times her original size andRon had written a letter to his brother, Charlie, about picking her up and taking her to the reserve that he works at in Romania. Charlie had written back that he would send some friends to pick Norbert up.

I was going to miss my familiar, but she promised that we would see each other again. It was agreed upon that Harry, Hermione, and I would be the ones to take her since only three could fit under the cloak with Norbert and Ron had gotten bitten by Norbert so he was in the Hospital Wing. Unfortunately, the letter that Charlie sent was put in one of Ron's books. While he was in the Hospital Wing, Malfoy had borrowed that particular book. He knew the plan.

When we went down to get Norbert, she was in a crate and tearing a stuffed bear apart. I felt really bad for Hagrid, he would miss Norbert so much. I mean he practically raised him. I patted him on his lower arm, that being the highest I could reach, and offered him an understanding smile. He gave me a sniffly smile back. I grabbed the front of the crate and Hermione and Harry grabbed the back. Hagrid threw the cloak over us and we started back to the castle.

When we made it to the top of the astronomy tower, we were all gasping for breath. There were 497 stairs going up that thing! I stroked Norbert until Charlie's friends got there to pick him up. They were very nice and helped us put the crate between their brooms, there was a harness. They waved and flew off. _Bye..._ I heard Norbert call out to me, mentally. I was going to miss her so much. Then, we all started off down the stairs. I grabbed the invisibility cloak and tried to get their attention that they weren't wearing it. When we got to the bottom of the stairs, they still hadn't heard me and Filch was at the bottom...darn you, Malfoy.

"Well, well, well," came Filch's raspy voice, "we are in trouble." Oops.

When Filch took us to McGonagall's office, words couldn't describe how scared they were. When she finally appeared, she had Neville with her. Darn you again, Malfoy! How dare he tell Neville that there was a dragon. "I would never have believed this of any of you. Mr. Filch says you were up on the Astronomy Tower. It's one o' clock in the morning. Explain yourselves." It was the first time both Hermione and I were at a loss for words. "I think I've got a good idea of what's going on. It doesn't take a genius to figure it out." Oh really, because I have no idea how your brain worked this out and you're probably not going to believe us about a dragon. That would just get us expelled so telling you is out of the question. "You fed Draco Malfoy some cock-and-bull story about a dragon, trying to get him out of bed and in trouble. I've already caught him. I suppose you think it's funny that Longbottom here heard the story and believed it, too?" When Neville looked at me with hurt in his eyes, I quickly shook my head to tell him it wasn't true. He nodded his head and smiled slightly. I zoned out. I was getting a vision. In the vision, McGonagall had taken 50 points away from each of us and given us detention. We were all ostracized because of the point loss. I refocused, and knew what had to be done.

"Professor, there really was a dragon, Hagrid got the egg at a pub. We were just giving the dragon to some friends of Charlie Weasley to take back to the reserve in Romania. I'm sorry, I realize now that we should have told you or Professor Dumbledore about it first. We just didn't want to get Hagrid in trouble. We didn't mean for anyone else to hear the plan or get in trouble." Everyone was staring open mouthed at me. Professor McGonagall nodded.

"Is this the case, Mr. Potter, Miss Granger?" They nodded their heads. "Very well, I shall only take 5 points off each of you and award Gryffindor 10 points total for helping a friend in need. You shall all receive a notice about when your detention shall be. Now, get out of my classroom."

When we were back in the dorm room, Hermione asked me why I told McGonagall about Norbert. I replied, "I didn't want Gryffindor to lose 200 points, which we would have lost had I not told her, and I didn't want to be ostracized."

"How did you know, though?"  
"Like I said before, Hermione, I'm a prophetic seer." I heard Hermione scoff at me before i fell asleep.

About a week later, we all got notes from Professor McGonagall telling them to meet Filch in the Entrance Hall at 11 that night. Nina and Neville walked together and made it there before Filch and everyone else did. Once everyone was there, Filch said, "Follow me. I bet you'll think twice about breaking the rules now. You'll be serving detention in the forest with Hagrid." He said this like he thought it was the worst punishment ever. Oh well, Hagrids awesome. So is Fang. Hagrid grinned at Harry, Hermione, and me. I smiled and waved back. Fang trotted over to my side and gave me a lick. Once Filch was gone, Hagrid told us about the unicorn problem. The poor things! This was an outrage. I went with Fang, Neville, and Draco.

I felt so bad for Neville when Draco scared him. I mean he was so freaked out he shot up red sparks. I flipped around and slapped that jerk right across the face. I may have left some bruising. Whoops...whatever. We were now with Harry instead of Neville. Harry was much harder to scare. I saw something silver on the ground. Oh, it's unicorn blood. I followed it with the others trailing behind me. When I found the unicorn I literally wretched. There was a cloaked figure drinking its blood. It was the most upsetting and disgusting thing I had ever seen. That poor creature. When it saw us the cloaked being started toward us. Draco screamed and ran along with Fang. I backed up in front of Harry and collapsed onto him. We fell back into the tree behind us and Harry wrapped his arms around me as if that would protect me. Suddenly, a horse like creature appeared.

It reared up in the creature's face and kicked its front legs out. The thing fled. I wiggled out of Harry's grasp as soon as it was gone and ran to the unicorns side. I dropped to my knees next to it and jumped when I heard it in my head. It wasn't like when my familiars talked to me. It was hard to explain.

My lady, I am dying. Please take my horn for your use.

I wish I could help, but I don't know how. Go to sleep.

Goodbye my lady. It was nice being able to meet you one time.

The unicorn closed its eyes as its horn fell from its head. There was no mark where the horn was and it was now just like a pure white horse. I pocketed the horn and stood, turning to Harry and the horse creature. Oh, it's a centaur. That is so cool! "My lady," the centaur said, looking at me. Why are all the equestrian animals calling me that? "A pleasure to meet you. Please, I must take you two back to Hagrid. Only then, will you be safe." I nodded and grabbed his arm. He hoisted me and Harry up and galloped to where I'm guessing Hagrid was. A brown centaur interrupted us until the one we were riding, Firenze, told him I was the daughter of the Horse Lord. Could they be talking about my father? Do they know who he is? Before I could ask Firenze, he was leaving me with Hagrid and everyone else. Hagrid took us back to the castle where I told Vati and Lav everything that had happened. They laughed when I told them I slapped Malfoy.

"Maybe your dad is the Horse Lord," suggested Lav. I shrugged my shoulders.

"But how can one man be a lord of creatures that have existed since ancient times?" Vati asked.

"I don't know," I said. "Maybe he has an ancient version of the Sorcerer's Stone." We all started giggling. We were about to continue our conversation, but Hermione yelled at us to go to bed.

**That was a long chapter to write. Hope you liked it. Review and Vote please.**


	15. Chapter 14: Traps, Traps, and More Traps

**Here's the next chapter, one more chapter for the Sorcerer's Stone part. In CoS Luna will be introduced. Just an FYI. Thank you IAmTheTaintedAngel for your review. Keep 'em coming everyone! And don't forget to vote for Siri's parent. Hermes and Aphrodite are still in the lead. They are tied. And don't forget to give me something to put in the story in your reviews. That helps me a lot with the updates and yes, I do listen to your advice. Thank you also to Grey-Rain-Cloud, I thought the unicorn part would be a nice add in. Everyone can send me ideas on what she should do with it.**

Chapter Fourteen: Traps, Traps, and More Traps

Nina enjoyed the practical parts of the exams and was sure she did well on the written parts, being an eidetic and everything. Her pineapple di a lovely Irish Jig for Professor Flitwick and made an ivory snuff box with pastel purple vines carved over it. In Potions, her potion was the only one that was both an intense orange and completely opaque. The test in History of Magic was far too easy. I mean really it was so obvious some of the questions. After the exams, Nina joined the Weasley twins and Lee Jordan in tickling the tentacles of the giant squid.

That night, Nina heard Hermione sneak out of the dorm room. She decided to follow her, if just to annoy her. When she got to the bottom, she saw Hermione stun Neville. "You're all going to make sure the stone is safe aren't you." Nina looked at them with raised eyebrows. At their nods she grinned. "Excellent, I'm coming with. Let me run and grab my guitar. I heard Hagrid say it will sooth Fluffy and put him to sleep. Nina ran upstairs and strapped her guitar to her back. When she got back down, she joined the Golden trio underneath the cloak. It dragged slightly on the ground, but Nina was okay with that, it hid their feet better.

Quietly, they snuck to the third floor corridor and hermione used an Alohomora to open the door. They crept in and took off the invisibility cloak. Nina swiftly set up her guitar and began to play a lullaby from when she was a few months old. She assumed it was from a dream because in the memory her father was holding her and her brother in his arms singing it. They looked a lot like him.

Hush-a-bye, don't you cry,

Go to sleep my little baby.

When you wake you shall have

All the pretty little horses.

Black and bays, dapples, grays,

All the pretty little horses.

Hush-a-bye, don't you cry,

Go to sleep my little baby.

Hush-a-bye, don't you cry,

Go to sleep my little baby.

When you wake you shall have

All the pretty little horses.

When she finished singing, Hermione had just dropped through. Nina slung the guitar back over her back and jumped after them, shutting the trap door behind her. She felt herself land on something squishy. She took out her wand and waved it. "Lumos." She looked around and saw vines coming up and twisting around her's and the Golden trio's bodies. "It's devil's snare, Hermione!" Nina called to the slightly panicky girl who instantly relaxed along with Nina. They began to sink and fell through. Nina let out a hiss of pain as she landed on her ankle funny. There was the disgusting sound of cracking bones as the joint snapped from the pressure. A tear fell down Nina's face as she bit her lip, clutching her injured ankle. "Get the boys down while I make a splint," she gasped out. Hermione nodded and began to instruct the boys on what to do.

Nina's POV

I grabbed the charm Morgan had said was for first aid. I thought of a splint and gauze and they appeared in my hand. I have to remember to thank him. I quickly set my foot and wrapped the gauze around it. Then, I wished for medical tape to keep it in place. When I was done, I held the medical tape and extra gauze and thought done. It disappeared in a flash. I looked up to see Ron fall through. I stood up and put some weight on my right leg, the one with the broken ankle. It hurt a lot, but it would support me. We walked, I limped, to the next room.

There was a whole lot of flying keys there. Must be Flitwick's protection. Ron tried to turn the knob, but, what do you know, it was locked. I looked at the lock. It was silver and rusty. I glanced up and saw a key just like it. "Over there, " I said. "It's the only one that looks remotely like this lock." Here I glanced over at the three brooms. "You guys should fly, you're the ones who had flying lessons, I missed it." They nodded and chased after the key. Harry finally caught and gave it to me. I placed it in the lock and twisted. Propping the door open with my foot, I straightened out the poor keys wings so that he could fly straight. Have a little mercy people.

In the next room, there was a giant chess set. Harry played a bishop, Hermione a castle, Ron a knight, and I was the queen. I yelled at Ron not to do it when he let himself get taken. Then, I took out the other queen, and Harry took out the king, just like Ron told us too. I teared up as we moved on to the next room.

I started coughing as we made it to the next room. It smelled dreadful! Oh, that's because there is a huge troll there. Wow, it's even bigger than the last one. It smells worse f-Focus Nina! We raced past it and into the next room. Snape's protection. I looked back, a purple fire blocked our exit. A black one kept us from moving on. I hopped over to the table with potions on it. Oh, a riddle. I got really good at those while practicing with the Grey Lady. She's very shy, but also very wise.

_Danger lies before you, whilst safety lies behind,_

_Two of us would help you, whichever you would find,_

_One amongst us seven will let you move ahead,_

_Another will transport the drinker back instead,_

_Two among our number hold only nettle wine,_

_Three of us are killers,waiting hidden in line._

_Choose unless you wish to stay here forevermore,_

_To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:_

_First, however slyly the poison tries to hide_

_You will always find some on nettle wines left side;_

_Second, different are those who stand at either end,_

_But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;_

_Third, as you see clearly, all are different size._

_Neither dwarf or giant holds death on their insides;_

_Fourth, the second on the left and the second on the right_

_Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight._

I laughed. It was actually quite simple if you eliminated the potions one by one. I picked up the smallest bottle and a round one. "The round one will get us back. Hermione, you take it and go owl Dumbledore, get Ron out of here as well. Harry and I will take this one and get the stone. Take Skittles. She's the fastest owl I've seen. Tell her I sent you and she'll allow you to use her." Hermione was about to argue, but I gave her a glare and she shut her mouth. She took the round bottle and drank a sip. She, then, ran back through the purple fire. I turned to Harry. "Bottoms up," I grinned before taking a swig, grimacing at the taste, and passing the bottle to Harry. He gulped down the rest and together we ran through the black fire straight into trouble.

When, we got into the next room, Harry did a double take that it was Professor Quirrell. He bound us and then told us of how he had turned to the dark side. I gulped. I'm in so much trouble with the Ross twins if I make it out of this alive. Quirrell unbound Harry and made him stand in front of the Mirror of Erised. So that's where it ended up. Bad timing ADHD! When Harry couldn't figure out where the stone was, a voice from Quirrell's turban told it to use me. I was unbound and roughly dragged to my feet. I staggered slightly because of my ankle but managed to limp over to the mirror.

When I looked into it, I saw the same thing I saw over Christmas Break, an older, pregnant me and Morgan with his arms wrapped around my waist. He flashed me a goofy grin before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a ruby red stone. He gently placed it in the pocket of my jeans. In the real world, I felt the stone drop into my actual pocket. Quirrell asked me what I saw and I told him I was in front of a restaurant back home in America holding the deed. Needless to say, he didn't believe me. He somehow knew I had the stone.

He removed his turban and turned around so that I could see what should be the back of his shockingly bald head. Instead of his scalp, there was another head. That can't be healthy. Stop it, Brain! The head on the other head told me of how he was Lord Voldemort and how he could bring my father to me. I didn't believe him. My father had always been a sensitive subject for me and Percy and I hated when people just threw stuff around about him. So...I slapped the Dark Lord. At first, he was shocked, but, then, he ordered Quirrell to kill me and Harry.

We started running, but I tripped and fell because of my ankle. I flipped around to try and stop Quirrell from killing me. Harry was there. He grabbed Quirrell around the neck to stop him and the older man started to scream as blisters appeared over his throat. Blisters were appearing all over his skin. Eventually he collapsed. Harry passed out next to me and the last thing I remembered was Professor Dumbledore and Hermione standing over me.

**Hope you enjoyed the second to last chapter. The next chapter will be a lot shorter unless people give me stuff to add to it.**


	16. Chapter 15: A House Cup and Going Home

**Here's the last chapter of Sorcerer's Stone. I decided to honor Sassycassie218's request and put in the last bit. This means that I am making them a year younger in all of the PJO books and that Lightning Thief will be before CoS. It was a really good idea and I couldn't leave it out. Don't worry though, Nina will be joining in all of the quests and I'm changing the normal quest number to 4. And to Grey-Rain-Cloud, Nina will use the horn to save someone on the quest, until then I'm having Artemis and Apollo shrink the horn and trunk and turn them into charms for the bracelet.**

Chapter Fifteen: A House Cup and Going Home

When Nina woke up, she found two very anxious girls, two red haired twins, and a shy Earth Mage by her side. They all gave her hugs. "How long was I out?"

"6 days, 5 hours, 32 minutes, and 5 seconds," Fred informed her.

"And you know the exact time how?" she asked him.

"We always did," George said.

"Like to be," Fred continued.

"Precise," they finished together.

Nina laughed. "Well you were very precise." She looked around and saw they were alone in the Hospital Wing. "Where's everyone else?"

"At the feast," supplied Neville. "But, Madam Pomfrey said you were perfectly healthy and that when you woke up, you could come down."

"So," continued Parvati. "We've been poking you to try and wake you up." Nina laughed again and swung her legs out of bed. The girls shooed the boys out and helped her into her robes. When they were done, they all ran down to the Great Hall. As they sat down, desert started. Even Parvati, the health freak she is, chowed down on the pastries. They were really hungry.

Once everyone was done eating, Dumbledore stood up and everyone became silent. "Now, as I understand it, the house cup here needs awarding, and the points stand thus: In fourth place, Gryffindor, with 312; in third place, Hufflepuff with 352; Ravenclaw has 426 and Slytherin, 522." The Slytherins were cheering and everyone else was groaning. "Yes, yes, well done, Slytherin. However, recent events must be taken into account." Here everyone froze and turned back to Dumbledore. "Ahem. I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. Yes...First-to Mr. Ronald Weasley for the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, I award Gryffindor house 50 points. Second-to Miss Hermione Granger for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house 50 points. Third-to Miss Christina Jackson, for the use of quick thinking to save the lives of her companions, I award Gryffindor house 50 points. Fourth-to Mr. Harry Potter for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Gryffindor house 60 points." They were now tied with Slytherin. "There are all kinds of courage. It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but it takes just as much to stand up to our friends. I therefore award ten points to Mr. Neville Longbottom." We all jumped up and started cheering. Gryffindor had won by one point.

On the train ride back to Kings Cross, I sat with Lav, Vati, and Nev. I was lying spread out across the seat with my feet on Vati's lap and my head on Nev's. Lav was sitting across from us. I laughed at a joke that Lavender had told us. She learned it on a vacation to California. I sat up, suddenly. "You know, it was really rude the way Dumbledore took the House Cup away from Slytherin. I'm glad we won and all, but I think Dumbledore should have done that different." The other three nodded their heads.

"You know Nina, this is why we love you. You always try and help others, no matter how much you hate them," Lavender grinned at Nina. Neville nodded his head and Parvati gave a thumbs up in agreement. Nina smiled, she had some really great friends. When they got off the train, Nina immediately spotted Morgan and Diane. She waved to Neville as he went to talk to his Gran and dragged Parvati and Lavender over to the older teenagers.

Nina threw herself into Morgan's arms and he spun her around laughing. "I missed you," he whispered in her ear. Nina stepped back from the embrace and wrapped her arms around Artemis for a slightly quicker hug. She stood next to Lavender and Parvati.

"Guys," she said, "this is Morgan and Diane Ross. They are the Light Mages I told you about. Morgie, Di, this is Lavender and Parvati. They're my closest friends at Hogwarts."

"Nice to meet you two, Nina was almost constantly talking about you," laughed Parvati.

Morgan grinned. "Yeah, That sounds like Sparkles." Nina rolled her eyes and Di slapped Morgan on the back of his head. Apollo just stuck his tongue out at his twin.

"Bye Lav, bye Vati," Nina said hugging both girls. "I'll owl you over the summer. The ministry connected my fireplace to the floo so that I can get from England to America easier. You guys can come over that way and we'll have to go to the Alley together." The other two-thirds of the Skittles trio chorused their goodbyes and went off to find their families. Nina jumped on Morgan's back and he carried her out while Di grabbed her trunk, shrinking it and stuffing it in her pocket.

As they walked to the point where they were going to light/mist travel, Nina told them all about her year at Hogwarts. "Why did the equestrian animals call me their lady and say that my father was their lord," she asked her two best friends. Apollo and Artemis looked at each other. They were told by Zeus to bring her to Camp Half-Blood so she could join her brother. They might as well tell her now.

When they got to the spot they had picked, Apollo put Nina down and started to explain. "Okay Nina, you know about the Greek gods, right?" Nina nodded. "Well, they are real and they still exist. They still have kids too. We had our suspicions of you being a demigod, but weren't entirely sure until Poseidon claimed Percy at Camp about a week ago. I'm Lord Apollo, and Di is Lady Artemis. We wanted to tell you, but we weren't allowed. I swear on the River Styx that everything I just said is true," Apollo finished off. Thunder boomed in the distance.

"Wow, okay, I believe you, but why are you telling me all this now? Why not later?"

"Would you have believed us telling you that you were the daughter of Poseidon, the lord of horses, until what those horses told you? That, and Zeus told us to tell you so we could bring you to Camp Half-Blood, which is where demigods are trained, to go on a quest with your twin to retrieve his lightning bolt because he thinks you and Percy are the lightning thieves."

Nina nodded her head. She then looked up at her two friends. "Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's get this show on the road. But, you'll need to take me there, I don't know what it looks like." The twin archers grinned and hooked arms with the young girl. They three amigos disappeared in a flash of golden and silver light.

**Here you go guys. I hope you liked it. And for those of you who aren't liking the flawless relationship between Nina and Apollo, there will be a rather large fight between them towards the end of lightning thief. Just so you know, Lightning Thief will be under this story too, as well as all the other books because I hate when you have to go searching for the next fanfic in the series. It wastes so much time. See you guys in a bit and keep the votes and reviews coming.**


	17. Chapter 16: A Prophecy and My Destiny

**Here's the next chapter, sorry to Grey-Rain-Cloud about the fight. I just don't want their relationship to be too perfect if you know what I mean. It will also help the plot if Nina loses a little of her trust in Apollo. And to answer you question about Zeus thinking Nina helped with the stealing of his lightning bolt, I just plain out don't like him along with a few other gods and goddesses. FYI said immortal beings will be bashed. To IAmTheTaintedAngel, Percy will find out about his mom in the Lightning Thief, but he will still love her. Sally will also warm up to Nina a little by the time Paul comes into play, yes he will be in the story, how else will Percy get into Goode and remeet Rachel? Paul and Nina will have a close father-daughter relationship as will Nina and Poseidon when I get to that part. In this chapter, I give a few hints to why Apollo and Nina fight, a shout to whoever guesses the reason and another shout out if you can guess what god will cause the fight. Virtual cookies if you get both right. Enjoy the chapter.**

Chapter Sixteen: A Prophecy and My Destiny

Apollo's POV

When we reappeared in front of Half-Blood Hill, I turned to look at Nina, about to tell her of our prophecy. I still couldn't Believe that Nina was the daughter of Poseidon. The girl I was destined to fall in love with. The first girl who would ever in all of Greacen History, love me back. When I looked into her innocent face, my heart filled with emotion for the little 11 year old. She had so much potential, I couldn't bring myself to tell her something that would probably ruin her life. I didn't want to hurt her like that. I knew I would have to tell her, but I would do that at another time. I would let her enjoy her life a little longer before telling her. Instead, I hugged my favorite demigod, yes even over my own kids, no offense to them. "Good luck," I whispered to her before flashing away.

Artemis' POV

I knew what Apollo was thinking. He thought he would ruin Nina's life by telling her about the prophecy. I think she would understand as long as he was the one to tell her. I had known the girl for three amazing years and am quite proud to say I know her very well. She trusts Apollo and will believe him, but if someone else tells her, there will be serious trouble. I hope he tells her soon, because I wouldn't put it below some of the gods to tell her instead. I gave Nina a hug and told her to take out her unicorn horn. She did as told and I took out her trunk and made it its correct size. I waved my hand and they became charms for her bracelet. "There we go, to access the horn, just pull it off the bracelet and it will change back and to access anything in your trunk, just do what you do with the healing and food charms. Nina grinned at me and gave me another hug before running up the hill.

Nina's POV

I ran up Half-Blood Hill and went to the big, baby blue farmhouse, just like Morgie and Di-I mean Apollo and Artemis told me too. It would take a while to get used to calling them by their real names. When I got to the Big House, I saw my brother and threw my arms around him. He told me about our mother's disappearance, him being on the news as a convict, his defeat of the minotaur, and how he was claimed by our father. That explains the whole lost at sea thing Sally told us about. A centaur named Chiron came over to us and told us a little about the quest and how we were to pick two companions. I left that to Percy since I didn't know anyone here. He picked a satyr named Grover and a daughter of Athena named Annabeth. Uh oh, a blonde Hermione. My life just gets better and better doesn't it. Chiron told Percy and I to go up to the attic and look seek out the oracle.

And now I'm in an attic. There are a lot of mementos up here. I looked over and saw a troll heart. The label on its jar read

_Christina Jackson, Ron Weasley, and Harry Potter_

_Hogwarts_

_10/31/91_

_Troll Heart_

I dragged Percy over to it and told him the story of how I'd killed it with the help of Ron and Harry. Needless to say, Percy was very impressed. We eventually found the oracle. It was a mummy. I was very disturbed by it. We stared at it for few seconds before I gained the courage to ask, "What is my destiny?"

The mummified oracle stared at me before opening its mouth. Green mist spilled from it. "Your destiny lies with the sun, child, but that is not what you meant. The mist swirled around to form Gabe and his poker buddies.

_You shall go west, and face the god who has turned._

_You shall find what is stolen, and see it safely returned._

_You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend._

_And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end._

I gulped. That was rather ominous. Percy looked at me and said, "Race you downstairs." I grinned and nodded. As soon as he was downstairs, I concentrated on the mist in the room and traveled back in front of Chiron. A minute later, Percy was by my side. When Chiron asked me how I had mastered my water abilities after only hours of knowing about them, I told them of how Artemis and Apollo trained me to use Mage magic and do archery, something which Chiron was very shocked to learn about. Apparently, not many children of Poseidon are good at archery. Apollo always did say I was insanely unique.

Percy repeated the first two lines to Chiron but not the second two. I respected his wishes on that choice and didn't tell Chiron those lines. Anyways, it felt as if the oracle was specifically talking to Percy there. Grover grinned, claiming how he knew Percy would find the bolt. I smiled at the overzealous satyr. We would get along excellently. I had a feeling that my relationship with Annabeth would be like my relationship with Hermione. In other words, brutal. Chiron told us how the oracles words often had double meanings and that brought me back to what the oracle said earlier...Your destiny lies with the sun. The sun could only be Apollo, but how does my destiny lie with him? Does it have something to do with our friendship? Maybe it was talking about what I saw in the Mirror of Erised? I shook the thoughts away and focused back on Chiron.

He told us about how he thought the god who had turned was Hades. Everyone agreed except me, but I didn't voice my thoughts. From what Apollo told me, Hades didn't seem all too bad. The entrance to the underworld was apparently in the west, L.A. to be exact. I could tell Percy was ready to do this so I flashed him a grin. Poseidon needed us. I wasn't sure how I felt about this. I wanted to make my dad proud, but I was kind of upset that he was only claiming my brother and I because he need us. As I was mulling over my thoughts, I started to glow green. I looked up and saw a trident over my head. I smiled slightly, my dad cared enough to properly claim me and not just let people know I'm his daughter because he claimed Percy.

Chiron smiled, "All hail Christina Jackson, first born daughter of Poseidon." He gave me a sad smile. I wonder what that was about. I shrugged and followed Percy to dinner. When I started eating at my table, after sacrificing to my dad of course. The food here was definitely better than the food at Hogwarts. Of course, the nymphs have been cooking much longer than the house elves have.

The next morning, I stood with Percy, Grover, and Annabeth as Chiron gave us a parting speech. An older boy named Luke gave Percy flying shoes. He gave them to Grover since being children of Poseidon, we can't fly. I really do want to fl-Oops, my brain went off track again, but I can't yell at my ADHD because that's what keeps me alive in battle. Oh well. Once Chiron finished his speech, we all filed into a van labeled Delphi's Strawberries. Hey, whatever works. The original Argus was driving us. As in the one from the myth with Io. That is so cool! Grover told me how he supposedly has an eye on his tongue and that's why he doesn't talk. If he does, that is so sweet. Argus dropped us off at the bus station and drove off. From here on out, we were on our own.

**For the Siri's godly parent poll, Aphrodite and Hermes are still tied and I'm leaning towards Hermes. Nina will be singing again at the bus stop instead of them playing the game with the apple so please send in a song you think will be good. I will not do highway to hell for those people who watched the movie. My next update will be sometime later today since it's already Wednesday over here, so please send in your song title and artist fast. **


	18. Chapter 17: Furies and Medusa

**I put two PJO chapters in this one. Nina will fight with her wand in this one and meet some more monsters which is obvious if you look at the title. Remember to keep posting your ideas for the story and keep voting for Sirius' godly parent. It's going to be Hermes as of now, so if you don't like that, go to my profile and vote. I don't own Broken Girl by Matthew West. To IAmTheTaintedAngel, you are correct with your guess. It is Ares. Nice job. Enjoy!**

Chapter Seventeen: Furies and Medusa

Nina's POV

The four of us sat in the bus station waiting for our bus. I saw lots of signs with Percy's face on them that said, "HAVE YOU SEEN THIS BOY." Stupid Gabe, he probably lied to the whole world, telling them that my brother is a delinquent. I hate him so much! First, he hurts me, then he gets the cops and every other person who holds authority in America to chase after my brother. That little...

While we were sitting in the bus station, I listened to what Grover was telling us about Gabe. "Your mom married Gabe for you. You may call him 'Smelly' but you've got no idea. The guy has this aura... Yuck. I can smell him from here. I can smell traces of him on you both and you, Nina, haven't been near him since the beginning of September."

"Gee, thanks Goat Boy, where's the nearest shower?" my brother and I said in unison. We smiled at each other. I loved having my twin back. Oh, we would definitely be doing that a lot. Annabeth seemed annoyed by our antics. She is definitely another Hermione.

"You two will be doing that a lot, won't you?" Grover groaned. At our nods, he sighed and continued, "You should be grateful. Your stepfather smells so repulsively human he could mask the presence of any demigod. As soon as I took a whiff inside his camaro, I knew: Gabe has been covering your scent for years. If you hadn't lived with him every summer, you probably would have been found by monsters a long time ago. Your mom stayed with him to protect you two. She was a smart lady. She must have loved you a lot to put up with that guy-"

Here I cut him off. "No," I said. Grover and Percy looked at me funnily. "She loved Percy, she never loved me. She could care less what happened to me. Sally hates me and isn't afraid to let me know. I'd say sorry about ruining your perfect image of her, Percy, but she's not all that great." My brother was about to say something, but I shook my head and stood up, walking over to another bench. When there weren't any mortals looking, I summoned my guitar through the music charm on her bracelet. She pulled the strap over her head and began to strum.

Look what he's done to you

It isn't fair

Your light was bright and new

But he didn't care

He took the heart of a little girl

And made it grow up too fast

Now words like "innocence"

Don't mean a thing

You hear the music play

But you can't sing

Those pictures in your mind

Keep you locked up inside your past

This is a song for the broken girl

The one pushed aside by the cold, cold world

You are

Hear me when I say

You're not the worthless they made you feel

There is a Love they can never steal away

And you don't have to stay the broken girl

Those damaged goods you see

In your reflection

Love sees them differently

Love sees perfection

A beautiful display

Of healing on the way tonight

Tonight

This is a song for the broken girl

The one pushed aside by the cold, cold world

You are

Hear me when I say

You're not the worthless they made you feel

There is a Love they can never steal away

And you don't have to stay the broken girl

Let your tears touch to the ground

Lay your shattered pieces down

And be amazed by how Grace can take a broken girl

And put her back together again

This is a song for the broken girl

The one pushed aside by the cold, cold world

You are

Hear me when I say

You're not the worthless they made you feel

There is a Love they can never steal away

And you don't have to stay the broken girl

You don't have to stay the broken girl

As I finished off the song, a tear fell from my eye. I looked up to see everyone clapping for me. I smiled sadly at them and strung the guitar over my back. Our bus was here. I sat with Percy on the bus. He wrapped his arms around me and I let all of my emotions go. He clung to my twin and sobbed. After a few minutes, I had cried myself dry and looked up, wiping my tears. Percy was staring at three old ladies towards the front of the bus. They stood up, claiming they needed to use the restroom. All together? Weird...

"She didn't stay dead long," hissed my brother. Hmm...those must be the furies. "I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime."

"I said if you're lucky. You're obviously not." Annabeth snapped back. I glared at her. No one talks to my brother like that.

"All three of them," whimpered Grover. "Di immortales." I was shocked to know what the latin phrase meant. _The gods._

It's okay. The Furies. The three worst monsters from the Underworld. No problem. No problem. We'll just slip out the windows." Great idea-not. Even if they did open, we're going at least 60 down a major highway. We'll become roadkill.

"They don't open," Grover voiced my thoughts.

"A back exit?" she suggested. Great we end up with the only stupid child of Athena. Percy asked about them attacking with witnesses around and Annabeth told us about the Mist and all that mumbo jumbo. Ooh, I want gumbo. And there goes the ADHD again. Annabeth passed Percy her invisibility cap. He used it to get to the front of the bus. Grover asked me if I knew a way to become invisible. I smirked at him and flicked my wrist. My wand shot from the holster on my left wrist that I had bought at Diagon Alley. I tapped it to my head and disillusioned myself. It felt like taking a cold shower. That was a wake-up call. Focus! I followed my brother to the front, then shot a mild stinging hex at one of the Furies. She hissed and turned back to me and Percy. Leaving her sisters. Percy managed to jerk the wheel and get us off of the road. The Furie was getting closer. I saw Annabeth take out the other two.

"Where are you daughter of Poseidon?" hissed the one in front of me.

I removed the charm while shouting, "I'm right here, you hag thingy!" I know, not very impressive, but hey, I was under a lot of pressure. I stunned the Furie and she dropped to the ground. Percy jumped forward and stabbed her with anaklusmos. She exploded into dust. Percy took off Annabeth's magic hat. He grinned at me before running down back to Annabeth and Grover. Annabeth yelled at us for not getting off the bus. I rolled my eyes. Without us, she would be dead. She had a lot of trouble handling those other ladies. By now all of the passengers were off the bus.

We all walked off the bus. Percy and I were walking side by side. As we stepped down, a tourist snagged a picture of us. Uh oh, it's time to run. My brother grabbed Annabeth's arm and I grabbed Grover's. We were out there faster than an acromantula leaving a basilisks nest. We ran down the road and eventually made it to a store. Percy asked me what the sign said. I was just as dyslexic as him, but he forgot that a lot because I like to read so much. I smirked slightly before saying, "This is just a rough translation, but I believe it says Atnyu Mes Gderan Gomen Meprouim."

My brother glared at me and said, "Ha ha, very funny. You could have just said you had no clue." I stuck my tongue out at him.

"But that's no fun, fratellino," I complained.

"I'm taller, sorellina, and I don't care how fun it is."

"I'm older," I grumbled back. Every time one of us called the other fratellino or sorellina, respectively of course, we had that argument. And no it wasn't planned, it just became tradition. Grover did this weird laugh/bleat at our antics and Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"You were right, Perce," started Grover. "Your sister is awesome."

"Aw, you were telling the people at school about me," I teased my brother. He blushed and looked down.

"Oh, and the sign says Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium," Grover informed us three, dyslexic, demigods. Well, the name explains all the garden gnomes. I walked up to the building and kicked the door open. I smelled food and I was hungry. Of course, I totally forgot about the food charm. Whoops. An elder lady greeted us and invited us back for some burgers. She wore a veil over her face and hair. I wonder why. She looked as though she had once been a model from what I could see of her. Then again, who knows what her face looks like.

The burgers, fries, and shakes were really good, but afterwards, I felt a little drowsy. I started to get a little cautious, but it was so hard not to feel safe. I think that food may have been drugged. The lady talked us into taking a picture. We all sat on a bench and smiled at her. Then, I realized she didn't have a camera, and that she had a hissing sound coming from under that stupid veil. She started to remove it and as she did so, her fingernails turned into talons. Suddenly, Grover figured out that she was Medusa and we all dropped to the ground and began to crawl away.

I was ducked behind a statue of a centaur, the poor thing. Why did it have a paintball gun? I was trying to catch my breath when I felt a sharp tug on my hair. I whimpered as I was yanked to my feet. I squeezed my eyes shut. I had never been more terrified in my life. I could feel Medusa's snake hair slithering around my face, running through my hair and poking into my ears. I tried to squirm out of the demon's firm grasp, but I couldn't.

"Come now, child," Medusa whispered to me. "Open your eyes. I heard they were just like the Atlantic. Let me see your gorgeous face in all its beauty." I started to struggle harder, but the monster kept a firm grip around my neck, holding me in place. "My pets are very hungry, you know. If you don't open your lovely eyes-well, I would hate to see such a pretty face go to waste." I was so tempted to open my eyes. I focused on my magic, rooting me to my mind, and not letting her enter it. I would not let her win. I couldn't leave my brother and friends. "You know," Medusa continued, "I used to be beautiful. Many suitors wanted me. I was adored by all. Your father was my lover." I gasped and almost opened my eyes but in the last second, regained my focus. Suddenly, I heard a sickening Schlick! I was dropped to the ground. I opened my eyes and all that remained of Medusa was gold dust and her head.

I helped my brother pick up the head and place it in a box. We labeled it

_The Gods_

_Mount Olympus_

_600th Floor,_

_Empire State Building_

_New York, NY_

_With Best Wishes,_

_Percy and Nina Jackson_

I placed a gold drachma on it and whispered a quick prayer to Lord Hermes. With a whoosh, it was gone. I laughed, the gods would love that one.

Apollo's POV

I was sitting at another boring council meeting when my favorite brother, Hermes, started cracking up. I looked at him strangely, there was definitely not anything funny about these meetings. He snapped his fingers and a box appeared. Ah, the mail. Zeus ordered him to read who it was from.

"It says 'With best wishes, Percy and Nina Jackson'," laughed Hermes. I saw Poseidon and Artemis grin. Hey, if these were Poseidons kids sending us a package, it's got to be good. I still remember some of the things Theseus sent us. That kid was a riot. Hermes opened the box and took out...Oh my gods, that's Medusa's head. Hermes, Poseidon, Artemis, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, and I all started cracking up. I definitely liked these kids. Well, I already knew I liked Nina...a lot.

**I hope you enjoyed, Percy learned a little bit about his mom's personality in this chapter and Nina cleaned the slate so to speaks.**


	19. Chapter 18:Skittles,Gladiola,andMonste r...

**Thank you for the review Grey-Rain-Cloud. I thought then would be a good time to make Percy aware of how much his mother hates his sister. In this chapter, you get more Mage powers and a little more Skittles towards the beginning. I want to have Nina have a demigod dream about Sirius in Azkaban, but I don't know when to put it in. It has to be before POA though, so can you guys send in your thoughts? Thanks.**

Chapter Eighteen: Skittles,Gladiola, and More Monsters

That night, they camped in a clearing a little ways from the road. You could tell that local teens had used it for a party. Nina lay down with her head on Percy's lap and closed her eyes. She listened to Grover tell Percy all about nature and its god, Pan. She sighed, it was disgusting how society had ruined nature so much. It used to be so beautiful. Camp was a nice reminder of that. She fell asleep with dreams of hiking through the woods. She really is a strange child.

The next morning, Nina woke up at the crack of dawn. She sat up and realized that no one else was awake. She smirked slightly before taking out her wand, the Trace didn't work on her over here in America. In England it did, but not here. She flicked it once, all of the trash was banished into non-existence. Se decided to flick it one more time, Annabeth's hair turned blood red. Nina smiled at her handiwork before curling back up in her brothers lap. She drifted off once again rather quickly.

She woke up to a raving Annabeth. "You!" the girl screeched, pointing at the not so innocent Nina. "You did this to my hair! Fix it now!" Nina rolled her eyes but took out her wand and flicked it. There was a screech and, the now blonde, Annabeth smirked. "Look, an owl. Here girl, come to me. I'm a daughter of Athena."

Nina growled at Annabeth. How dare she try and act like the owner of the owl. Nina looked at the owl for a second before giggling. "What!" Annabeth snapped at her. The black haired girl shook her head and stuck out her arm. She whistled. The owl swooped down and landed on her outstretched arm.

_Hey, Nina! Didn't think you could get away from me that easy did you._ Nina laughed at her owl.

_I was wondering when you'd show up, Skittles._

_Who's the girl? I don't care if she was my lady's daughter. I only land on you and anyone I'm sending mail to for you._

_You're the best. That's Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena. Did you know I was a daughter of Poseidon. _Skittles shook her head. Nina looked around and noticed Grover was missing.

_Have you seen a satyr? _she asked her owl. Skittles shook her head. Luckily, that was when Grover showed up, with a pink poodle.

"Hey guys, this is Gladiola," the man-goat said. He gestured to the poodle. "Say hello."

"Hello," Annabeth said, her voice rather sarcastic in Nina's opinion.

"Hi there," said Nina. She knelt down and scratched the poodle behind the ears. It barked.

Grover laughed. "He says he likes you," the satyr informed the confused girl.

"Can you speak to animals?" Nina asked. When Grover nodded, Nina smiled. "This is my familiar, Skittles. I can speak to her through my mind and she can speak to me through hers."

"Wow," Grover exclaimed. By this time Percy had woken up and joined them.

"What's a familiar," yawned Nina's twin.

"Oh, every Elemental Mage has at least one. An Elemental Mage is someone who can control elements. All gods are one depending on their domain, and you're a Water Mage because you're a son of Poseidon. A familiar is a Mages life companion that is immortal until their Mage dies. The familiar dies with the Mage. Familiars and Mages share mental bonds. I also have a dragon familiar who is in Romania." Percy nodded his head.

"Who's the poodle?" was his next question.

"Percy, meet Gladiola. Gladiola, Percy." Gladiola yapped at Percy.

"I'm not saying hello to a pink poodle. Forget it," Percy said.

"Percy, I said hello to the poodle. You say hello to the poodle," Annabeth said sweetly.

Nina's POV

Oh, so she's all sweet on my brother. Hmph! Typical. "C'mon, Fratellino, I said hello to the Gladiola," I encouraged my brother. Gladiola growled at my brother. My brother said hello to Gladiola. Grover then went on to explain how he had found Gladiola. He told us of how the poor poodle's owners were absolutely dreadful and how he had run away. Grover also told us about the $200 reward and how Gladiola was willing to go back to his family to help Grover get the money.

I felt bad doing it, but we gave Gladiola back to her owners. The money we received in return was enough to buy us all tickets west on the Amtrak train. We spent two days on the train and weren't attacked once. Something was up, and I didn't like it. Percy and I tried to keep a low profile because the picture that the tourist took was now all over the news. Not only was Percy wanted, but as was I because Gabe told the news about me when they saw my picture with Percy. Percy's sword looked like a lacrosse stick and my wand looked like a knife because of the Mist. The picture had a caption.

_Eleven-year-olds Perceus and Christina Jackson, wanted for questioning in the Long Island disappearence of their mother two weeks ago, are shown here fleeing from the bus where they accosted several elderly female passengers. The bus exploded shortly on an east New Jersey roadside shortly after the Jacksons fled the scene. Based on eyewitness accounts, police believe the twins may be traveling with two teenage accomplices. Their stepfather, Gabe Ugliano, has offered a cash reward for information leading to their capture._

Annabeth told us not to worry. Something about mortal police not being able to find us, but she didn't sound so sure. The rest of the day, Percy and I spent the rest of the day either pacing the length of the train because of our ADHD or looking out the window. Once, I saw a family of centaurs grazing (the youngest one waved to me), and another time, I saw a large, golden lion roaming the plains. The money got us as far as Denver. That would have been fine with me, if we had seats in the sleeping car, but nope, we had to sleep in the seats. Great.

While I was sleeping one night, I had a strange dream. It was of a man with black, shoulder-length hair. He was seated on a throne that seemed to be derived of bones. I shuddered slightly. The man appeared to be sleeping, or he had his eyes closed anyway. I looked around what I assumed was his throne room. There were soldiers made of skeletons. I looked back at the man and realised I must be in the Underworld and that the man on the throne was my uncle, Hades. I quickly bowed. "My lord," I called out, uncertainly, "why is it that you have summoned me?" My uncle opened his eyes and seemed rather surprised that I had figured out who he was. Did he think I was stupid or something?

"My niece," he said. "You do not believe what the everyone else does about me. Why is that."

I looked at my uncle. He seemed genuinely curious. I stood up straighter. "My lord, the other gods and my fellow demigods misunderstand you. Why would you need to start a war, when I'm sure your kingdom is large enough already? There have been many deaths recently, your kingdom must be miles wide. Besides, the other gods fear you and your power. You are one of the big three and you rule the largest domain and have the most subjects. You also have the powerful heroes of ancient times and many strong monsters at your disposal. Why wouldn't they fear you?"

"I'm not sure if you are kissing up or speaking your mind, Niece, but what you say is true. My kingdom is large enough to easily overrun Olympus. I did not steal the bolt. It is highly illogical seeing as my Helm of Darkness was stolen as well. I do not believe you or your brother are the thief either, and I do not suspect your father. I believe Kronos may be trying to rise again. History often repeats itself and I feel we shall have a second titanomachy on our hands. I also believe you and your brother will be the children the Great Prophecy spoke of. To that, I wish you good luck."

"Thank you, Uncle. Why is it that you took my mother?"

"I wished to have your brother learn the truth of her and I wanted to meet my niece and nephew. Since I am not exactly welcomed at Camp Half-Blood, I decided to bring you two here since I knew you would have to set on this quest either way. The minotaur was not supposed to try and kill your brother, though. It was supposed to abduct your mother and then leave. You must wake now, young one. Good luck on your quest," were my uncle's last words before the dream faded out and the throne room disappeared. That was very interesting.

I woke up as we reached St. Louis. Annabeth dragged us all to see the Gateway Arch. I'll admit, I kind of wanted to see it. Bird Brain led us through the underground museum. I stopped and took lots of pictures for Skittles since she couldn't come with us on the train so had flown to Artemis, wherever she was. Grover passed me lots of purple jelly beans while we were down there so I was all good. Grover complained about how the underground smelled like monsters and I just laughed at him. Something felt eerily wrong to me, like when you play a wrong note during a song. I decided to shake it off, what could go wrong? Little did I know I had spoke too soon.

We were stuffed in an elevator to go to the top with a huge lady, I'm talking Fluffy huge here, and her little Chihuahua named that she called Sonny, even though that wasn't his name. She asked about our parents and Annabeth said that they were below and afraid of heights. Nice save, Chase. I loved the elevator because of how it curved, no one else seemed to share my opinion.

When we got out, I immediately went to the spot on the floor that was glass. From there, I could see straight down to the Mississippi. Totally awesome! I just stood there, staring, until the five minute warning. Percy and I were about to get in with Annabeth, Grover, and some other people, when the park ranger said the elevator was full. Oh well, now I get to look through the glass some more. I was about to head back over, when the lady grew fangs and scales. The Chihuahua grew to the size of a lion. My mistake, not Chihuahua, it's a Chimera. On its collar, read: CHIMERA-RABID, FIRE-BREATHING, POISONOUS-IF FOUND, PLEASE CALL TARTARUS-EXT. 954.

I did the only thing I could do, I whipped out my wand and set up a protective barrier between the monsters, my brother, and I and the small family and park ranger. I put my wand away, and pulled out the bow and arrows Lady Artemis gave me. I began circling the creature and firing arrows at it while my brother used Riptide. When I saw an opening, I whipped out my wand and sent a slashing hex at the tail. This caused the tail to fly clear off and Echidna to start battling me. Whoops!

She pulled out twin knives and started slicing at me. I quickly put my weapons back where they belonged. I closed my eyes for a millisecond, focusing on the water in the air. Once I found the center of my Mage Magic, I opened my eyes. They were now glowing a crystal blue. They glowed when I was completely in tune with my magic, like in battle. I spread my arms, and created whips out of the moisture in the air. It was now just me and my enemies. I lashed my right arm forward and hit Echidna with the water whip. She screeched as the water slashed her left arm off. It dissolved into dust as soon as it hit the ground. I used the other whip to cut off her right arm. So far, I was winning. While, Echidna was howling in pain I took a quick glance to my left to see Percy fall through the glass. I slashed off Echidna's head with the water, then turned to face the Chimera. It growled at me and lunged forward, but I was too fast. Before it got closer than five feet to me, it had also lost its head. I jumped through the hole Percy had made, knowing the Mississippi, which I would land in would save my life.

**Hope you liked this chapter. Next one will be the naiad and Ares.**


	20. Chapter 19: A Naiad and Lord Ares

**From here on out, all of the chapters will be in Nina's POV unless is say otherwise. Thank you for the review, Grey-Rain-Cloud. Nina gets a few hints about the prophecy, but doesn't figure it out yet. Enjoy the chapter, Ares will be one of the bashed gods.**

Chapter Nineteen: A Naiad and Lord Ares

When I woke up, I found myself at the bottom of the Mississippi and lying on top of my brother. I rolled off of him and poked his cheek. He jumped up, landing in a fighting stance. I giggled and waved at him. When he saw me, he rolled his eyes and sat down. I grabbed a cigarette lighter I saw on the ground and lit it. Percy, seeing what I did, grabbed a hamburger wrapper, which instantly dried, and put it up to the flame. It caught immediately. When Percy let go of the wrapper, the flame spluttered out and the paper became wet and slimey again.

Percy and I stood up, thigh-deep in mud. "Thank you, Dad," I whispered out to the water. Percy did the same. I could tell we were both thinking the same thing. Why had Poseidon saved us? Was it because he needed us, or did he actually care? I shook my thoughts away. I looked up and saw a riverboat pass by overhead. Percy and I looked at each other and opened our twin bond to each other.

_I let those people up there get hurt._

_No, Perce, you didn't. I killed the Chimera and Echidna before jumping down after you._

_You're so amazing, Nina. You were so cool with those water things, I just have a sword that I hardly know how to use. You have magic, can control water like it's an extension of yourself, and can fire a bow and arrow, something I stink at. I wish I could be more like you._

I frowned at my brother. _Percy, you can control the water like that too. and you'll be amazing with a sword one day. Hey, look at me. _Percy lifted his head to stare into my eyes. _One day, you'll be the hero, I would be dead right now if you hadn't destroyed Medusa, and you killed the minotaur with its own horn._

My brother smiled slightly, _You killed a troll with a pipe. _We both started laughing. We suddenly heard a woman's voice. Hey, she sounds like Sally. Ewww!

"Take the sword, Percy. Your father believes in you." My brother asked if the woman who appeared in the water was our mother. "No, child, only a messenger, though your mother's fate is not as hopeless as you believe. Go to the beach in Santa Monica. It is your father's will. Before you descend into the Underworld, you must go to Santa Monica. Please Percy, Nina, I can't stay long. The river here is to foul for my presence. I cannot stay, brave ones. You must go to Santa Monica! And, Nina, Percy, do not trust the gifts..." Here she disappeared. _What gifts? _I thought to my brother. He shrugged and together we swam to the surface.

When we got on shore, every emergency vehicle in the area was at the Arch. Oops, we blew up a national monument. Nina and Percy were tackled by Grover and yelled at Annabeth. There was a news reporter talking about Percy and me falling from the Arch. Thank the gods they don't know who we are. Somehow, we made it to the Amtrak station to catch the train to Denver.

When we got to Denver, we decided to contact Chiron. Anyone ever heard of an Iris Message? It's this thing where you make a rainbow, throw a drachma into it, and say the name and location of who you want to talk to. While Annabeth set it up in a do-it-yourself car wash, I summoned some bubble gum from my food charm. It was winter mint. Annabeth started speaking, "O goddess, accept our offering. Half-Blood Hill," Annabeth requested. A blonde boy appeared on the screen.

I was about to ask who he was when Percy shouted, "Luke!" He turned, raising his sword but dropped it, grinning when he saw who we were.

"Percy, Annabeth, and you must be Christina?" I nodded my head blowing a bright green bubble. He laughed. "Thank the gods! Are you okay? Wait, where's Grover?" Grover into a stuck his hand in front of the mist to show he was there and Luke laughed again.

"I answered the 'Are you okay?' question by saying, "Yeah, we're all fine and dandy. Just checkin' in." Luke told us what he knew and accidently implied it was Annabeth. Something he made haste to correct. We said our goodbyes as the water shut off. Afterwards, we all went off to get some grub. They didn't bother asking me for food so I didn't tell them about the charm. Although I am shocked no one asked where I got the gum. Did they seriously think I was carrying it around this whole time?

When we got into a diner, a waitress came and asked us if we had any money. We didn't know what to say until this really buff guy sat next to me in the seat, shoving me and Grover up against the wall. It made me very uncomfortable when he wrapped his arm around me. He scared me and that's sayIng something coming from me. The waitress asked us if we had any money again. The biker guy told her it was on him. Uh oh, if Medusa's lair had taught me one thing, it was be aware of free food.

I tried to inch away from the biker, but he pulled me closer. He repositioned the arm he had around my shoulders so that his forearm was partially in front of my neck. To everyone else, it looked quite casual, but we demigods knew that if he were to flex his arm, he could easily snap my neck. I gulped but stayed still. He gave a wicked grin at my brother. "So your old Seaweed's kid, huh?" I looked up at this guy as my brother retorted. I could see up his sunglasses from this position. His eyes were made of flames. This man, whoever he was, was a god. I sent my thoughts to Percy, who nodded subtly to show he had received the message. Percy figured out that it was Ares. If I was scared before, I was shaking in my combat boots now.

Ares told us he needed a favor done. When Annabeth started to say we couldn't, Ares' hold around my neck tightened. I started to choke and Percy quickly agreed to do the favor. Ares smirked and disappeared. Off we go to Waterland. Yay!

When we got to the locked gate, I took my brother and Annabeth's hands and used the water to lift us up and over the fence. Grover used the flying shoes. When we were all over, we went to an old souvenir stand and grabbed some clothes. I was now in a baggy, aquamarine Waterland t-shirt, a loose pair of Waterland lacrosse shorts, and my filthy converses. Man, it felt nice wearing clean clothes again. After everyone was changed, we went over to the Tunnel of Love ride.

We decided that Percy and Annabeth should be the ones to retrieve the shield. When they went down there, they found the scarf of Aphrodite. I wonder what it smells like. It is dipped in love potion after all. Percy grabbed the shield, and I heard a string break. This can't be good. Wires shot over the dry pool and connected themselves to the other side. Great, a trap. Spiders began crawling out of the sides and swarming to the sides of the pool. Annabeth started freaking out. Go figure, children of Athena are scared by spiders. Probably because of Arachne. What she did was wrong, but there was honestly no need to turn her into a spider. That is rather cruel.

Video cameras popped up and began counting down. "Focus, Percy!" I shouted to my brother. "There's still water in the pipes. Use it to bring yourself to the other side of the ride. Grover and I will get you two there." I saw Perce nod his head and shut his eyes in concentration. A second later, water burst from the pipes and caused the boat Percy and Annabeth in to start a journey through the tunnel. Grover and I ran to the other side.

Grover's POV

Nina and I ran to the other side of the tunnel. We arrived just in time to see Annabeth and Percy jump. I watched as they got higher and high-Oh gods, what goes up must come down. "Maia," I shouted, kick-starting the flying shoes. They sprung into the air and I flew up. I grabbed Percy and Annabeth by the collars of their shirts just before they started to fall. I flew in a zigzag pattern back to the ground because it was hard staying airborne with three of us using one pair of shoes. I dropped them a few feet from the ground. That was really close.

Nina's POV

When Percy dropped to the ground, I hugged him for all I was worth. He hugged me back and then went to give Grover a man hug. Ah, boys, why won't they just admit they can be girly too.

When we got back to the diner, the war god was waiting for us in the parking lot. "Well, well. You didn't get yourself killed."

My brother growled at him. He pulled me behind him before growling back, "You knew it was a trap.

Ares grinned wickedly and said, "Bet that crippled blacksmith was surprised when he netted a couple of stupid kids. You looked good on TV. 'Pollo couldn't stop staring at you." The last sentence was directed at me. I shuddered. There was so much malice behind that last sentence.

Percy shoved the shield at Ares. "You're a jerk." Annabeth, Grover , and I all sucked in our breath. Ares pointed us to a truck, a zoo truck.

"That's your ride there. It'll take you straight to L.A. with one stop in Vegas. I glared at Ares before flipping around and storming over to the van. He has got to be joking. I could feel his stare on me and just knew that he was smirking at me and I wondered why. I also wondered what he meant about Apollo staring at me while we were on TV. Weird.

When the other demigods joined me, we all got on the van.

**Don't forget about reviewing and voting for the poll about Sirius.**


	21. Chapter 20: Zebras and Hotels

**Thank you Gray-Rain-Cloud, yeah I realized the mistake. Don't worry, I fixed it. Thanks for telling me, though. If anyone else sees a mistake please tell me. To IAmTheTaintedAngel, I did what you asked and put the dream in this chappie. Hope you like it. Sorry about the short chapter, I couldn't think of much but there is a little foreshadowing.**

Chapter Twenty: Zebras and Hotels

We climbed into the van just as it started moving. We were thrown back into pile of turnips at the sharp turn leading out of the gas station. I groaned and sat up. It was pitch black. I flexed my wrist to get my wand out of its holster and whispered, "Lumos Maxima," whilst swinging my wand towards the ceiling. A ball of light flew from the tip and hovered a few inches from the ceiling, illuminating us all. I looked around at everyone in the eerie light.

It smell awful in the van, like a pile of dead, rotting acromantulas. Yeah, absolutely disgusting. Sitting in a row, were three cages. On the outside of the van, it said Kindness International. That was a lie. In the first cage, there was an antelope. It had a balloon wrapped around its horn. In the next cage was an albino lion. No one had wanted to get close enough to mess with him, but he was pacing his way of small cage on soiled blankets. The creature in the third cage was the most pitiful. It was a zebra. There was chewing gum in its mane and it was limping. I was so mad. How could someone be so cruel as to do all of this. The lion had two bags of turnips and the zebra and antelope each had a tray of raw hamburger meat. Needless to say, I was seeing red.

I grabbed Annabeth's knife and used it to chop the ribbon off the antelope's antler. It nuzzled me in thanks. Then, I used my water magic to clean the lion's blankets. It purred. I didn't know lions could do that. They are cats though so it makes sense. To help the zebra, I used magic to cut its mane so that the gum was all out.

After I finished fixing the animals up, I put my wand back in my holster. I grabbed hold of my food charm and thought of a t-bone steak and two gourmet salads. They appeared in front of me. I gave the steak to the carnivore and the salads to the two vegetarians. "How did you do that?" asked Annabeth, shock written across her face.

I smirked. "Lord Apollo gave me a magic charm bracelet for Christmas. One of the charms causes food to materialize before me."

"Why didn't you tell us?" she shrieked at me. Wow, even her voice is high-pitched like Hermione's when she's yelling at me.

I was about to answer, but my brother beat me too it. "You never asked," Percy said cheekily. I nodded in his direction, exactly what I was going to say. Perce winked at me. Annabeth rolled her eyes at the two of us.

_Thank you, my lady. _I turned to see the zebra talking to me. I smiled at him.

_Your welcome. _I smiled at him. I then fell asleep on Grover's shoulder.

Grover shook me and my brother awake the next morning. "The truck's stopped. We think they're coming to check on the animals."

"Hide," Annabeth hissed at us. She put on her magic Yankees cap, I disillusioned myself, the two boys dived behind the turnip sacks. The truckers walked in. I growled as they started to abuse the animals. Those insolent mortals.

_Free me, lord, lady. Please._

I heard Annabeth sneak out of the truck. KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! I grinned, smart plan. The guy in the truck walked out. Percy and Grover jumped forward. Percy pulled out Riptide and broke the locks. The animals burst from their prisons and raced through the streets of Las Vegas. I made myself reappear and hugged the boys. The animals were safe.

We jumped out and met Annabeth. We all started running. We ran for a while before stopping at a hotel and casino. It was called the Lotus Hotel and Casino. The doorman smiled at us and welcomed him in. There was air-conditioning so I wasn't complaining. Why did I have to be so stupid.

A bell-hop walked up to us and took us to room 4001. He said it was already paid for. More of Ares' gift, perhaps. Oh well, I was just glad to be able to take a shower. Yes! The soap smelled like lotus blossoms, go figure. After that, we all went to sleep. I slept in a conjoining room with Annabeth.

While I was sleeping, I had another demigod dream. I was walking through the halls of what appeared to be a prison. I heard so many screams and the room felt cold. As I walked, I passed this creature covered in dark robes. It was leaning over a woman and sucking this white stuff out. I shivered and looked away. It was disturbing. I couldn't bear to watch. I sped up faster. I passed an insane looking woman who was muttering in her sleep. She was whispering about some dark lord and the Longbottoms. Was she talking about Neville's parents? I gulped and ran faster. When I reached the edge of the corridor, I saw one last cell. There was a man in there. His hair was long, dark, and matted. He appeared to be meditating. His eyes snapped open and his lips twisted into a smirk. "The daughter of Poseidon has joined our world," he whispered, his voice hoarse and scratchy from lack of use. I gasped, who was that man? I woke up in a cold sweat.

The next day we played lots of games. My favorite was a karaoke game. I met this girl named Bianca Di Angelo while I was playing karaoke. She was really good and introduced me to her brother Nico. They were really nice. There was everything here. Eventually, Percy realized something was up. Percy quickly rushed us out of there. I wanted to grab Bi and Nico, but wasn't enough time. When we got out, there were only one day left till the summer solstice.

**Hope you liked, I may or may not post again tonight.**


	22. Chapter 21:SantaMonica and theUnderworld

**Thank you Brelee24 and Grey-Rain-Cloud for your reviews. Your guesses were right Brelee24. I'm almost done with LT and then I will finally get started with CoS. Next chapter will have the beginning of the fight between Apollo and Nina. It won't be until Nico and Bianca show up again in the story that they make up so don't get your hopes up people. Enjoy the chapter.**

Chapter Twenty One: Santa Monica and The Underworld

We called the nearest taxi that would take us from Las Vegas to L.A. Thank the gods this guy accepted casino credit cards. When he swiped the thing it came up as unlimited. I told the guy to keep the change. As soon as we were in L.A., we hopped out out of the taxi and started on our way to Santa Monica.

Santa Monica looked exactly like the California beaches you see in the movies look like. It just smelled a whole lot worse. It stunk! We all walked down to the edge of the water. "What now?" asked Annabeth. We through you in. I grabbed Percy's hand and squeezed it. He looked into my eyes and smiled.

"Ready when you are," he said.

"I was born ready," I smirked back as we began trudging into the salt water. I could feel Percy's surprise that we were still dry and I started to mentally laugh.

_Shut up! _he thought through our bond.

I stuck my tongue out at him. We were now completely submerged, and breathing. A mako shark swam up to us. It nuzzled up against us like a dog. Together, Percy and I reached out our still conjoined hands and stroked its dorsal fin. It bucked a little as if inviting us to hold tighter. We did so. As soon as we had a tight grip, the mako shark shot off.

When it finally stopped, the surface was glistening maybe 150 ft. above us. I could make out the Nereid from the Mississippi making her way toward us. She dismounted the humungous seahorse. I so want one of those. It was awesome! "Percy and Nina Jackson. Well done, you have come far. It has been many years since children of Poseidon have been born. Even longer since there have been twins." She paused and looked at me. "And, never before has our lord been blessed with a little girl before. We have watched you both with great interest." I suddenly remembered the faces in the Atlantic when I was younger. The nereids.

"If our father is so interested in us, why isn't he here? Why didn't he come speak to us?" I asked. I so hope he does care.

"Do not judge the Lord of the Sea too harshly. He stands at the brink of an unwanted war. He has much to occupy his time. Besides, he is forbidden to help you directly. The gods may not show such favoritism."  
"Not even to their own kids?" my brother asked.

The nereid shook her head sadly. "I know you journey to Hades' realm. Few mortals have come back from there alive. I have for you gifts from your father. Take these,and when you are in need, smash a pearl at your feet."

"What do they do?" asked my brother as he took the four pearls. He handed me two before we both pocketed them.

"That depends on the need," smiled the nereid. She waved to us and vanished. How typical. Abandoning us in the middle of the ocean. Oh, wait. Nevermind, the mako is still here. Percy and I grabbed onto it and it brought us back to the beach.

Once we were on the surface, we quickly found Annabeth and Grover. We told them everything on our way back to the city. Once we got there, we started searching for DOA Recording Studios, the entrance to the Underworld. No one could tell us where it was. Eventually, we found it because of luck.

When we entered, we saw a man in an Italian suit sitting at the front desk. We gave the man, Charon, 20 gold drachma and a promise to ask Hades about a pay raise for him in exchange for letting us through. I think he got more on his part. We travelled through the Underworld and made our way to Hades' palace. Before we got there, Grover's shoes, the ones Luke gave him started acting up. They began to drag him down to the entrance to Tartarus. Oh no, this must be Kronos' doing. We chased after him and I managed to grab him before he fell in. Luckily, the shoes had been loose on him because of his hooves.

We ran rather quickly to the palace. Guards led us through the halls and I shivered. I could still hear the screams of anguish emitting from the Fields of Punishment. Percy grabbed my hand for comfort that there was actually someone else alive there. I looked back and saw Grover and Annabeth doing the same. When we reached the throne room, I bowed to my uncle. He looked as regal as ever sitting up there on his throne. He smiled lightly at me.

"Welcome to the Underworld. I assume you know the truth about your mother now, Percy Jackson." My brother nodded his head. "Good, that is why I took her. I needed to teach her a lesson on respecting my niece." Annabeth's, Grover's, and Percy's jaws all dropped. I just giggled and walked up to Hades, hugging him. He awkwardly hugged me back. Eh, Lord of the Dead, probably doesn't get a lot of hugs down here. "You may have her back, she is rather annoying. I did not steal the Master Bolt as you assume, either. My Helm of Darkness was also stolen. I did not inform the other gods because I do not wish to look like a baby, something which my little brother is making himself out to be. Use those pearls to leave this place. I do not have what you are speaking of and there is no other way out anymore. I have sealed all the exit ways and refuse to open one because then the ghosts will all escape. I can't be having that."

"Of course not, Lord Hades, but we only have four pearls," Annabeth said. Ouch, that would be problematic.

Percy looked at where our mother stood, frozen. "Let's go guys. I'm sorry mom, but I will come back for you. Even if it is just so I can yell at you for treating Nina like that." He stomped on his pearl and we all followed suit.

**Good night my lovely readers.**


	23. Chapter 22: Ares and Flying, Yay!

**Thank you for reviewing Grey-Rain-Cloud and IAmTheTaintedAngel. It's actually Ares who tells Nina about the prophecy, you'll see that in this chapter. The fight won't actually start until next chapter. Zeus will be bashed, though. Enjoy! One more chapter of LT I think.**

Chapter Twenty Two: Ares and Flying, Yay!

When we stepped on the pearls, mist spiraled up from them, encasing each of us in our own personal bubble. We began to float up. It was so cool! I looked up, uh oh. We were heading straight for the stalactites hanging from the ceiling. I flinched and shut my eyes, but we just kept floating up. I opened them to see we were floating up through the ground.

We kept going up until we were near the surface of the ocean. We came up and Annabeth and Grover were gasping for breath. They were soaked. I looked at myself and my brother and realized that we were still dry. When a coast guard boat came to pick us up, we willed ourselves to become wet. Percy had learned how to use his Mage magic well throughout the quest. We got towels over our shoulders and water bottles that said I'm a junior coast guard. Liar! Shut up, Brain.

We now knew the Master Bolt was in the backpack Ares had given us. When I saw him next...The coast guard dropped us off at the Santa Monica Pier. Thank the gods they had a lot of distress calls, otherwise they would start asking questions none of us would know how to answer. That would be bad. Percy was now barefoot, having given his shoes to Grover so no one would wonder about the hooves.

Annabeth started grumbling about how she should have realized the trick. I rolled my eyes. Nobody's perfect, Bird Brain. She then started apologizing about our mother. I waved her off, not wanting to talk about it and I could tell Percy was ignoring her. I glanced at him and the last line of the prophecy came to my mind. And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end. Our mother mattered most to Percy on this quest. I went over and hugged him. He hugged me back.

"The god who has turned wasn't Hades," Annabeth said aloud. No duh, Sherlock. "It was Ares." Never would have guessed that one. "How of we get all the way back to Manhattan to get Zeus the bolt?" The rest of us shrugged. I couldn't transport all four of us that far. I would kill myself with the magical exhaustion. Percy hadn't learned how to mist travel yet and would seriously hurt himself. I didn't know what to do and it was frustrating me.

We began walking down the beach. Everyone was talking about how Ares was about to start a three-way war. When we were almost to the road, what do we see? Ares in all his idiotic glory. I growled and pulled out my bow. Singing my quiver over my back for easy access. Percy pulled out Riptide. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the Jackson twins, and company," he added as an afterthought. "You were supposed to die in Tartarus. You know girly," he continued, looking at me, "Apollo doesn't really like you. There was a prophecy made back in ancient times about the first born daughter of Poseidon. She was supposed to fall in love with Apollo and they would get married. That's the real reason he hung with you." I felt tears start to prickle at the corners of my eyes. I didn't want to believe him, but, suddenly, what the oracle said made sense. Your destiny lies with the sun. It all made sense. Why else would two 14 year olds walk up to a little girl in the middle of Central Park.

I growled at him and aimed the arrow in my bow at his face, just as a tear fell down my face. He howled with laughter. I trie to stop the tear, but I couldn't. I had never been loved by anyone except my brother, and now I'm realizing that my closest friend didn't give a rat's but about me. Percy and Ares started arguing about how this plan wasn't Ares' idea. No duh, it was Kronos' idea. Ares had had enough. He summoned a boar and sent it at my brother. I shot the creature and Percy cut one of its tusks off. It lost its balance and veered into the sea.

"Are you going to fight me now!" my brother shouted at Ares. "Or are you going to hide behind another pet pig?"

Ares face turned the color of a grape. I was kind of impressed by it. "Watch it, kid. I could turn you into-"

"A cockroach. Or a tapeworm. Yeah, I'm sure. That would save you from getting your godly hide whipped." I groaned at Percy's stupidity.

"Oh, man, you are really asking to get smashed into a grease spot."

"If I lose, you get to turn me into whatever you want. Take the bolt. If I win, the helm and bolt are mine and you have to go away.

Ares swung the baseball bat off his shoulder. "How do you want to get smashed: classic or modern?"

Percy showed him Anaklusmos. Ares' baseball bat shifted into a two-handed sword. I glanced at my brother worriedly. What had he gotten himself into this time? They started battling. Percy would never win on the sand. _Get to the water! _I thought to him. He nodded at me and started backing up. Ares seemed to notice this, so he knocked my brother into a sand dune.

I turned around when I heard sirens. It was the police. Just perfect, now all we need are a couple monsters. I heard a shriek above me. I have to stop thinking about this stuff. All three Furies were circling the pair that was fighting. The police had now surrounded the area. I looked over at my brother to see him holding the tides back. Nice one, baby bro. Ares was wading out to meet him. One cop told them to drop the guns. So that's what the mortals are seeing. Stop it, me. Ares waved his hand and the cop cars all blew up. Oh, thank the gods, well not Ares, no one got hurt.

I turned back to the fight in time to see Ares start to glow. Grover yelled at us to shut our eyes and we all did. When I opened them again, Ares was gone and the Helm of Darkness was in front of me. I handed it to Alecto, the Furie that apparently pretended to be my brother's Pre-algebra teacher, asking her to bring it back to my uncle. She agreed and the three monsters disappeared. We agreed to get back to New York on time we needed to fly.

I thanked the Mist a whole lot for the rest of the day. The news said the explosion was caused when a crazy kidnapper fired a gun and it hit a gas pipe. They interviewed us all and it wasn't hard for me to pretend to be a scared little victim. They decided that my brother and I were not fugitives and that Ares had kidnapped us. The only thing they couldn't figure out was how I got kidnapped too because when my brother was "taken", I was still in England. I let my tears fall about what Ares had told me about the prophecy now. Besides, it helped the news lady believe me better.

"I was waiting outside the airport for my stepfather," I started, sniffling. My brother was standing behind me with his arms around me. Annabeth and Grover were huddled close to us. "The m-man drove up to me and I couldn't see him because I was of the p-passenger side of the c-car. I saw my br-brother in the passengers seat. It wasn't my st-stepfathers car, but I hadn't seen my family s-since early September s-so I didn't see a problem. Th-they could have just for-forgotten to write t-to me about it. I climbed int-to the back seat after p-putting m-my things in the trunk and locked the door. The man started driving. I looked up and saw the man wasn't m-my stepfather and th-that P-percy was unconconscious. I didn't know w-what t-to do and I couldn't j-jump out because we-we were already on the highway by now." Here I turned around and buried my face in Percy's shirt.

"All we want," Percy continued for me, "is to see our loving stepfather again. Every time I saw him on TV, calling my sister and me delinquent punks, I knew...somehow...we would be okay. And I know he'll want to reward each and every person in this beautiful city of Los ANgeles with a free major appliance from his store." I coughed here to stop my laughter at my brother's words. "Here's the phone number." The police and news reporters were so moved by our story, they passed around a hat for four tickets on the next plane to New York. Yay, I get to ride in a plane.

The plane ride was awesome. The whole time, Percy was praying to every air god he could think of. Even ones that weren't Greek. I laughed a little when he started praying to an Egyptian air goddess. I stared out the window the whole time. We were so high up, I couldn't even see the houses. I gave everyone gum that I had summoned from my charm for the ascent and descent so their ears wouldn't pop. They were very appreciative. It was the best thing ever, being up in the air.

When we landed, Annabeth and Grover got in a taxi to Long Island and Percy and I got in a taxi to Manhattan. No matter how much I hated Annabeth, it was sad to see the two go after all we had been through. Percy didn't want them to get hurt if Zeus didn't listen to us.

When we got to the empire state building, I asked for Mt. Olympus. The guy behind the desk called me crazy. I was ready to slap him when Percy told him that he had the Master Bolt. The guy was fast to give us the key card and rush us into the elevator. We went up to the 600th floor. When the doors opened, I decided something. Hogwarts was a pile of rubble compared to Olympus. That's saying something. When we made it to the throne room, there were two gods sitting there, glaring at each other.

**Hope you enjoyed.**


	24. Chapter 23:Uncle,Father,andEx-BestFrie n...

**Here's the last chapter of Lightning Thief. Thanks for the reviews. She will eventually forgive him Spaz86. And I hope you like how I made Zeus, IAmTheTaintedAngel. I followed what he says in the story for now because I think it paints him in a not so nice way already, but later there will be more bashing. Parvati and Lavender come back into the story at the end.**

Chapter Twenty Three: An Uncle, Father, and Ex-Best Friend

The two gods were my uncle, Zeus, and my father, Poseidon. I was glad no other gods were here. Who knows what I'd do if Apollo were here. Poseidon and Zeus were waiting for us to approach. I grabbed my brother's hand and together we walked forward. The gods were at least 20 ft. tall. It made me a little freaked out.

Poseidon's POV

I looked at my children. I had only seen them once in person. They had only been a few months old then. Now they were 11, 12 in a few months. Percy looked almost exactly like me. Nina looked like me too, just a lot more feminine. She looks just like I thought she would, more beautiful than Aphrodite. Of course I'm her father so my opinion is biased. Percy was also very handsome. Nina and Percy knelt in front of me, "Father," they said together. I inwardly cringed. I hated when people bowed to me, especially my own kids.

Zeus grumbled lowly. "Should you not address the master of this house first?"

My kids kept their heads down and waited. "Peace brother," I said eventually. "The children defer to their father. This is only right."

"You still claim them then?" my brother growled, menacingly. I saw my daughter tense up. It was like she was afraid I would renounce her. Why on Olympus would she think that?

"I have admitted my wrongdoing. Now I would hear them speak."

Nina's POV

I was scared when Zeus asked my father if he still claimed us. When my father called my brother and I wrongdoings, I could do nothing to stop the tears that fell. I wiped them quickly, but I knew my brother had seen them.

"I have spared them once already. Daring to fly through my domain...pah! I should have blasted them from the sky for their impudence."

"And risk destroying your own Master Bolt?" Poseidon countered. "Let us hear them out, brother."

"I shall listen. Then I shall make up my mind whether or not to cast these children down from Olympus."

Perseus, Christina. Look at me." I looked up at my father. He looked slightly concerned that my eyes were red. I shook it off as my imagination. Why would my parent actually care for me? My mother had drilled it into my head that I was a mistake and she only wanted Percy. "Address Lord Zeus, children. Tell him your story."

And that's what we did. Percy took out the cylinder that was the Master Bolt. It began sparking in Zeus' presence. He laid it at the king gods feet. Zeus opened his palm and the bolt flew into it. When my uncle closed his fist, the bolt enlarged and looked more like your classic lightning bolt. I gulped. Getting hit by that has got to hurt. We told the gods about Kronos. Zeus declared the matter closed. I couldn't help but roll my eyes a little. Thank Hermes he didn't see it.

Zeus left and threatened us about flying. I sighed. I had loved the feeling of being in the air and would now never experience it again. I was deeply saddened by this. I watched from a distance as Percy talked with our father. I turned around to give them more privacy. I remembered my father calling me a wrongdoing. Fresh tears started to pour down my face. It was just like what Sally had always said. I really was a mistake. Even my godly parent thought so. Only now, I didn't even have Apollo to comfort me. He didn't care about me either. I wondered if Artemis actually cared or if she had just been there to support her brother. Even more tears started to fall. I didn't notice my brother leave or the presence that was behind me.

Poseidon's POV

When I finished my conversation with Percy, he told me to tell Christina he would be waiting for her at the elevator. I nodded and waved him off. I walked up behind my daughter. She was shaking slightly and her arms were wrapped around herself. I placed a hand on her shoulder and she flipped around. I saw the tears pouring down her cheeks . I gently wiped them away and she flung herself into my arms. She clung to my shirt and buried her face into it. I rubbed small circles into her back and stroked her hair while she calmed down.

"Did you mean it," she hiccuped into my shirt. It was so muffled, I almost didn't understand her.

"I took her face in my hands and wiped her tears away. "Did I mean what?" I asked her.

"What you said about Percy and me being wrong doings."

"Oh, gods no. That's not what I meant. I meant I had cursed to innocent children with awful lives." I sat down on the floor and pulled my daughter into my lap. "Years ago, there was a prophecy about two children of the eldest gods. The big three made an oath to keep the prophecy from happening. The oath was unbreakable. If you break it, you're supposed to die. Being immortal, we can't die so, when I broke the oath, it gave you and your brother very bad luck."

She nodded her head and curled up into me. "Did you ever visit us?" Nina is eidetic, and both twins were awake when I visited them so doesn't she remember it?

"When you were a few months old, I sang you a lullaby."

Nina smiled. "I remember that."

"And I've always been watching over you. When I couldn't I sent my followers to keep you safe."

Nina sat up straight. "Ha! I knew it was a cyclopes. Take that Ms. Whitley!" I laughed at my daughter. Rodrick had told me that he thought Nina had noticed he only had one eye. "Thank you for keeping me safe, Daddy," she whispered. I smiled softly at her. Inwardly, I was jumping up and down. None of my children had ever called me that. Not even Triton when he was really little. It made my day. She stood up and hugged me goodbye. Then, she ran to meet up with her brother. I disappeared back to the ocean with a ridiculous grin on my face.

Nina's POV

I was so happy when my dad told me what he meant by saying he had made a mistake. I wasn't one, take that Sally. It made me even more happy when he said he had been watching over my brother and me. I had never felt so loved. On my way to the elevator, I ran into my ex-best friend.

He grinned at me. I just kept walking. I could hear him running after me. I sped up, but I was too late. He grabbed my shoulders and flipped me around. "Sparkles, what's wrong." I glared at him and slapped him across the face. How dare he ask me what was wrong.

He was staring at me, gaping like a fish. "I know about your stupid prophecy," I growled out through gritted teeth. Then, I high-tailed it to the elevator and my brother. "I hopped in with Percy and started slamming the button to go down. Percy looked at me confused, but I just waved him off.

We grabbed a taxi to get to Long Island and one hour later, we were back at Camp Half-Blood. When we got there, I had two girls in my arms. I looked at them and squealed. It was Lavender and Parvati. Padma waved at me from a few feet away. I smiled back at her.

"What are you guys doing here," I asked.

"Turns out we're daughters of Aphrodite. A satyr named Michael just came to pick us up a week ago and while we were coming here he told us about your quest. So, how did it go?" Lavender said all in one breath. I giggled and dragged them to my cabin. They laughed. I told them everything that had happened. Even the part about Apollo. They held me as I started to tear up again. Even thinking that he would do something like that made me want to curl up and cry my heart out.

"Any guy that makes you cry isn't worth your tears," Parvati started.

"The guy who is worth them, will never make you cry," Lavender finished. I wrapped them in another hug. They were the best friends I could ask for.

After that, I had the best summer ever. It turned out Luke was the Lightning Thief. I didn't care all that much until I found out he tried to kill my fratellino. When I learned that, I was out for blood. I got really good with fighting with a knife and Chiron gave me one named Mov. μωβ was the name spelled in Greek letters. It meant Purple. I loved it. I had Beckendorf, a son of Hephaestus make a sheath for it that strapped to my leg. At the end of summer, we each got a bead. This years bead was a trident. The councillors had made it purple and sparkly to tease me. I just stuck my tongue out at them and put it on the leather cord I had been given. Lav and Vati were proud to wear the bead that symbolized their best friend. Now, we just hoped no one at Hogwarts would question the matching necklaces.

**Hope you liked the chapter.**


	25. Chapter 24: Lockhart and Saying Goodbye

**Thank you for the review Grey-Rain-Cloud, I'm glad you liked the confrontations. This year at Hogwarts will be cool now that we have three trained demigods. The Sirius poll is closed and his godly parent will be Hermes. He is mentioned very briefly, but not by name. As is Snape. I may or may not post again today, I'm not sure. My fingers need a break from all the typing. The next chappie will be posted tomorrow at the latest. Enjoy!**

Chapter Twenty Four: Lockhart and Saying Goodbye

Normal POV

A few weeks before Hogwarts started up, the Skittles trio got their letters. They were training when they arrived. Lavender had chosen to fight with twin daggers that fit into braces on her forearms and she had a wand holster on her upper thigh. Parvati had a sword that shrunk into a dove pendant. She kept the pendant on a string that was tied around her wrist. The three girls paused their practicing to read the supply list. The owls, then stayed with the Athena cabin for the night so they could rest.

Their book list had all of the Lockhart books on it. Nina rolled her eyes. She had looked through one last year at Flourish and Blotts. There was no way he could have cured a werewolf. It was impossible unless they drank a nectar and ambrosia mix. She had asked Chiron if Gilderoy Lockhart was a demigod and he had informed her that no, he was not.

A few days later, Vati, Lav, Nina, and Padma all met at the Big House to go to Diagon Alley. Apparently, the fireplace was connected to the Floo Network because of a son of Hermes that disappeared 11 years ago and a grandson of Hades. The four girls walked through into the Leaky Cauldron. Nina waved to Tom and led everyone out to the entrance to Diagon Alley. First, the girls stopped off at Gringotts to exchange the drachma Chiron had given them for wizard money. Nina remembered doing this with Apollo back before she knew he was Apollo. She missed him a lot. She quickly shook those thoughts away as they made their way to Madam Malkin's for new robes, all the girls having grown some muscle while training. She didn't miss Apollo, she hated him. At least she tried to make herself hate him. It was just so hard.

"Oh, hello there, Nina," Madam Malkin said, recognizing Nina from last summer. "Where's your blonde friend?" Lavender and Parvati growled at the mention of the man who had hurt their friend so bad. Padma was oblivious.

"We had a erm, argument. We haven't spoken all summer."

"Oh, you poor dear. You two were getting along so well, too. Well, let's get you lot fitted." Madam Malkin led the girls to the back and chatted away merrily as she fitted them for new robes. She waved goodbye to the girls as they went to get their potions ingredients.

After that, they got the rest of their things and headed to Flourish and Blotts to get their books. They rolled their eyes at the long line to get books signed by Lockhart.

Nina's POV

Lockhart is such an idiot. More than half the things in those books are impossible to achieve unless you're a demigod. What a fraud. Oh, there are the Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione. I waved to Fred who pointed me out to George. Both twins grinned and waved at me. They carefully snuck away from the rest of their group and walked over. Lav, Vati, and Padma waved hello. Fred and George filled us in on what was going on.

Lockhart was forcing Harry to take tons of pictures with him. I pitied Harry. I would hate being on the front page of the Daily Prophet with that loser. Poor, poor Harry. Everyone else agreed with me. Harry got a free complete set of Lockhart's works. He gave them to Ginny. Fred, George, Lav, Vati, Padma, and I all looked at each other before saying, "Ooh, someone's got a crush." We all started laughing then. When, Draco Malfoy walked up to the Golden trio and Ginny, we went over to back them up.

Malfoy scowled at us and then his dad, Lucius showed up. When Mr. Weasley said Lucius first name, I started giggling. Thank the gods except for Apollo I was able to hide it. That would have been bad. I saw Mr. Malfoy put something in Ginny's cauldron. It looked like a little, black book. I shook my head, thinking it was my imagination. Mr. Weasley and Mr. Malfoy then started to fight. It was so cool. Mrs. Weasley yelled at Mr. Weasley for fighting. I wanted to defend him, but decided against it. I didn't want to be rude to Fred and George's mom. I introduced myself to Mr. Weasley and Ginny, them being the only Weasleys that hadn't met me yet. Mr. Weasley smiled at me and Ginny blushed. Aw, she's adorable.

The girls and I said our goodbyes then headed back to the Leaky Cauldron so we could Floo home. When we arrived, I told my brother how a fraud would be our DADA teacher. He was mad that his little sister wouldn't be taught proper defense. I hugged him, pretending to be a drama queen, claiming he did actually care about me. He rolled his eyes and patted me on the back. I stuck my tongue out him.

"Very mature, sorellina," he laughed. I grinned and ruffled his hair. He did not like that. I spent the rest of the afternoon hiding in a place my brother would never go. The and of the barbie dolls, in other words, the Aphrodite cabin.

When it was time to go back to Hogwarts, my brother hugged me very tight and told me not to do anything dangerous like last year. I told him that I made no promises. He slapped me on the back of the head. I hugged him and told him I would be safe. I hugged Grover, Silena Beauregard, a daughter of Aphrodite, and Beckendorf goodbye as well. I would miss them all. So, with Skittles on my shoulder and my trunk in hand, I mist travelled to the station. Mr. D. was using his earth magic to transport Lav, Vati, and Padma because they didn't inherit any Mage magic.

When we were all together, we walked into the station. Padma left to go sit with her Ravenclaw friends waving goodbye and saying she would see us later. Lav, Vati, and I went to sit with Neville and this blonde firstie. Her name was Luna and she was even more insane than I am.


	26. Chapter 25: More Lockhart and Mudbloods

**I decided to post this tonight since I won't be able to post much tomorrow. I have a lot of things to do. I will be able to post tomorrow evening though. So expect an update by then. Thank you Grey-Rain-Cloud and Dark Princess for your reviews. Yes, Nina will cure Mooney she will send him the mix over the summer with Skittles. I hope you like the short letter Poseidon sends to Nina, there will be a few of these through out her Hogwarts career. Nina is going to speak Italian randomly from now on because I just remembered how she said she sometimes switched into that language instead of English. Sorry for forgetting. Duratuss is Latin for freeze. Idiota means idiot for anyone who can't figure it out. Ragazzi idioti means idiot boys. If I forgot a word, look it up on google translate or ask me in a review. Same goes for the rest of the chapters.**

Chapter Twenty Five: More Lockhart and Mudbloods

The next morning, Harry filled me in on how he and Ron drove a flying car to school. I didn't think the detention was enough, so I slapped him upside the head. I did the same to Ron. When the mail came, Skittles swooped in and stole an English muffin. She perched on my shoulder to eat it. I scratched the top of her head. The Weasley family owl made a crash landing in Hermione's jug of pumpkin juice. I made a face as some landed on me. I hate juice with a burning passion. At camp, when I ordered water for breakfast, everyone looked at me funny. I told them that juice was tasted worse than a skunk smelled. No one ever questioned my ways again.

"Errol," said Ron, pulling the now dripping owl from the jug. Skittles mentally laughed and I berated her through our link. She stopped immediately when I threatened to feed her actual owl pellets for a week. Ron pulled a red letter from the owl. All of the people who were raised by wizards looked terrified. I was confused until Neville whispered in my ear what it was. Ron was stupid to fly the car to school, but I thought Mrs. Weasley was the one stepping out of line when she decided to embarrass her son in front of the whole school. That was uncalled for. It was even worse when she dragged Harry into it. It's bad enough publicly embarrassing your own child, but to bring someone else's into it is just wrong.

Ron opened the Howler-STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY HAD EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TIL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHEN YOUR FATHER AND I SAW IT WAS GONE, LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD BOTH HAVE DIED-ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED- YOUR FATHER'S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT HOME.

Everyone was staring at Ron and Harry. I knew they deserved punishment, but that was plain cruel. I looked at Fred and George. They had this look on their faces that told me this wasn't the first time Mrs. Weasley had done something like this. I growled and Neville looked at me funny. I waved him off. One look at Vati and Lav told me they agreed with me. Not even Ares was that bad. Hermione told Ron and Harry how they deserved that. No they did not, brillante una.

When Professor McGonagall gave us our schedules, we saw we had Herbology with the Hufflepuffs first. Lav, Vati, and I raced each other to the greenhouses. Lockhart was giving Sprout a lecture on how to properly care for a Whomping Willow. "Fa quell'idiota mai smettere vantarsi?" I asked Lav and Vati. Lavender giggled and I realized I'd said the phrase in Italian I had gotten so mad. I had been doing really good on not switching to other languages too. "I meant, 'Does that idiot ever stop bragging?"

The girls giggled and Neville just shook his head. "We'll be in Greenhouse 3 today, chaps," Professor Sprout said in a faux cheery voice. Only Lav, Vati, Nev, Harry, Hermione, and I had noticed the grumpiness. People are so unobservant. The Slytherins aren't, though. Lockhart asked to borrow Harry and before Professor Sprout or Harry could complain, had whisked the poor boy away. Once again, poor, poor Harry.

We were working with mandrakes today. That's the most dangerous plant we've worked with yet! When asked what mandrakes were, Hermione gave the perfect dictionary definition. You don't learn anything unless you can put it in your own words, and you don't know anything well unless you can teach it to someone else without confusing them. Hermione just confused half of this class. When Harry walked in, we broke off into pairs. Lav and Neville worked together and I worked with Vati. I had purple earmuffs, Lav had bright yellow, Nev had a fluffy, pink pair, and Vati had a blood red set. We set to work. I pulled the thing out, Vati grabbed it and put it in her pot, and we both started shoveling dirt on top of it. Neville's ear muffs were not completely on and the shrill shriek rendered him unconscious. Professor Sprout just left him there and Lav came to work with Vati and me. By the end of class, all the mandrakes were repotted and everyone was fully awake.

In Transfiguration, everyone was having lots of trouble. I turned my beetle into a button on my first try. It was a blue button with sea green waves etched into the outside. I pocketed it after showing it to Professor McGonagall. I would owl it to my dad. Luckily, because she was my familiar, Skittles could breath underwater. I thought my dad would get a kick out of the button. Hermione managed to change hers about half way through the class. She was followed soon after by Vati and Lav. There's were both pink with purple sparkles. Hey, there's reflect their Olympian parent too. Funny how that worked. A few minutes before class ended, Neville managed to change his. It was the color of wheat. That is odd.

Ron's wand was snapped by the Whomping Willow when the two ragazzi idioti flew to Hogwarts. It wasn't working very well. Ron smashed his beetle with his elbow when his wand emitted sulfuric smoke. The reason I knew it was sulfuric, was because of the rotten eggs smell. I covered my nose and mouth and gestured for my friends to do so as well. Sulfur made some bad acid. I didn't want that stuff in my body.

At lunch, I sat with Harry, Ron, and Hermione so they could fill me in on their summers and Dobby. They apparently thought we were a lot closer than we actually were. Even Hermione didn't seem to hate me anymore. Oh well, I still think she's a little know it all. I hate people like that. "So what about your friend, Morgan?" Hermione asked me. Why did everyone have to ask about him? I was still so mad at him. How could he do something like that to me?

I glared at Hermione as tears began to prick at my eyes. "We had a fight. I refuse to speak with him. Don't mention him in front of me." The Golden trio nodded. They seemed freaked out. I looked into my spoon. Oops, my eyes started to glow again. I quickly calmed down. When my eyes were green again, Harry asked Hermione what we had next. I was curious, I hadn't checked my schedule that far. She said DADA. Ron looked at her schedule and saw that DADA was outlined with little hearts. Harry and I both started cracking up and Hermione blushed. She didn't realize what a dirty piece of garbage Lockhart was. After I finished, Lav, Vati, and I joined arms and walked out of the Great Hall.

When everyone was outside the class, I noticed we had this lesson with the Ravenclaws. Padma waved and walked over. We began to giggle about how hard Beckendorf was crushing on Vati, Padma, and Lav's half-sister, Silena. It was really funny how such a buff guy could turn into a pile of pudding when she was around. We teased him so much about it.

Finally, Lockhart let us in. He had single desks, so I sat with Lav on my right, Vati directly behind me, her sister on her right, and Neville behind Padma. We rolled our eyes when Professor Lockhart told us our assignment. I cringed whenever someone said his name. We were to complete a quiz that was all about him. It disturbed me that a dude, that wasn't a son of Aphrodite, could be so self-absorbed. There were like a billion questions on the parchment. I groaned, my dyslexia had decided to be really bad that day. I looked at the questions. They looked something like this...

1: thaW si liGreoyd ckahrt'sL avfeorti lrooc?

2: htWa is Glidyore kaLchrts' cretes abmtiino?

3:aWth, ni oryu poninoi, si lGidroye oLkcrtahs' egraetst hcaevinemt ot teda?

All the way down to...

54: heWn is liGeory Lkocarh'ts ritbhyad, dan hatw oulwd shi dilea ifgt eb?

Eventually, I made it out with the help of Lav, who was ADHD but not dyslexic. Vati and Padma were both dyslexic but not ADHD. Lucky idiotas, not having to deal with both disabilities. Lockhart came around and collected all our parchment. Hermione and I both achieved perfect scores. The only reason I knew the stuff is because I always go through my textbooks before school. It grossed me out that a man would like the color lilac. I shuddered.

Next, Lockhart brought out some cornish pixies. Aw, there nothing more than little trouble makers. How dare Lockhart call them dark creatures. Pests, yes. Dark creatures, definitely not. Lav, Vati, and Padma rolled their eyes. Sofia, the two-year-old daughter of Demeter was more dangerous than a cornish pixie. I raised my hand.

When Lockhart pointed at me I spoke, "Professor," I hated calling him that, "my two-year-old cousin is more dangerous than a pixie. They're just little jokesters, peats if you must." Lockhart smirked at me. I just raised an eyebrow.

"Well, Miss Jackson, let's see how you fare against them." And just like that, Lockhart lifted the door and the pixies flew out. They pulled on peoples hair and when Lockhart tried to stop them, one took his wand. Great defense teacher he is. I stood up on my desk and whisked out my wand.

"Duratuss," I ordered. My wand tip glowed a soft pink and all the pixies froze. The students began going around and plucking them from the air. We all stuffed them back in the cage. I shot a smug smirk at Lockhart as the bell rang. I stuffed the books in my bag.

A few days later found Ron, Hermione, and I out on the Quidditch pitch. I sighed as I watched the players all zoom out onto the field, wishing I could be up in the air with them. Thanks to my uncle, I would be blasted from the sky if I got even more than five feet off the ground. I was very jealous, but hid my feelings by rereading the letter my father had sent me with Skittles about the button.

_Dear Nina,_

_I find it rather amusing that you decided to send me that button. Unfortunately, my wife saw the button and went into a rant about how unfaithful I was. May I remind you how many stepsiblings you have done here in Atlantis. And she's yelling at me. Besides, that's the first time she's come within 10ft of me in millenia. Enough about my complaints..._

_How has school been for you? You are the first magical child I have ever had. You are a lot of firsts for me and I couldn't be more proud of you. I'm proud of your brother too. Don't tell him, but you have a half-brother. He is an 8-year-old cyclopes named Tyson. Your brother is friends with Tyson at school. I find that very funny. I'm thinking of sending Tyson to camp. Would you like that?_

_Love,_

_Dad_

I loved that he signed it Dad. It made me feel like there was actually someone who cared about me. It made me feel special. I couldn't wait to meet my brother. I definitely wanted him to come to camp. "Hey, Nina, Hermione," Ron interrupted me from my musings.

Ron pointed out the Slytherin team walking up on the pitch. Ron, Hermione, and I made it down to the field just as the Gryffindor team landed. Malfoy had bought the position of seeker with Nimbus Two-Thousand Ones for the whole team. What a disgusting way to bribe someone. Just shows how much skill he has. I rolled my eyes at him. He glared at me. "You have no place at this school mudbloods." I stuck my tongue out at him, but Hermione was very upset by what he had just called her. Grow up, it's just Malfoy showing how immature he actually is. He apparently had forgotten the stunt I had done in the Great Hall last year because he was very angry at my lack of reaction.

Ron took out his broken wand. He pointed it at Malfoy, shouting, :Eat slugs, Malfoy!" The spell backfired and hit Ron instead. Harry and I grabbed him under the arms and rushed him off to Hagrid's hut. Hermione trailed after us. Once we got there, Hagrid gave Ron a bucket. We told him the days events.

**Hope you enjoyed this longish chapter.**


	27. Chapter 26: A Party and A Chamber

**Here's the next chapter. Hope you like. I need you guys to send in more songs for the next chapter because Nina hasn't sung in a while. Nina will be singing to Ginny when she's feeling down. Thanks, guys. Reviews: That is kind of what she did just with Lav's help. Thanks again IAmTheTaintedAngel and Grey-Rain-Cloud.**

Chapter Twenty Six: A Party and A Chamber

The next month or so passed rather smoothly for my friends and I. I was getting a little moody because I had been thinking about my falling out with Apollo. I wanted to hate him, but I just couldn't. A small part of my mind was yelling at me to mist travel to Olympus and forgive him. I wasn't going to. At least not yet. He had still betrayed me. Luna Lovegood, the blonde girl on the train had noticed my stormy mood and dragged me up to Madam Pomfrey's for a pepper up potion. It did not react well with my ADHD. Let's just say, Madam Pomfrey would definitely be using a cheering charm on me next time instead of that potion.

Luna and I had gotten quite close. It turned out she was not only a Light Mage, but also a prophetic seer. We would often be seen playing with the giant squid and swapping visions. I had just gotten one of an inscription on the wall of Myrtle's bathroom. It was written in blood and had terrified me. I didn't know what to think of it. Luna told me to just wait and see what happened. I decided to listen to her.

A few nights before Halloween, I met Nearly Headless Nick in the corridor outside of Charms. He was grumbling about some guy named Sir Patrick and some hunt thingy. "Hello, Sir Nicholas," I interrupted him.

"Oh, hello, Nina. How are you on this," he looke out the window," rainy evening?"

"I'm doing well, thank you although I am rather curious about why you seem so upset."

"Ah, well you see, I have applied once more for the Headless Hunt. Sir Patrick has refused my request because of the less than a centimeter wide piece of skin still attaching my head to my neck. Ah well."

"Well that's rude, just because you have skin doesn't mean you're not headless. In a book about Medieval Times that I read, it said someone was declared legally headless when there was less of an inch of skin connecting their head to their neck. Sir Patrick can go to Hades."

Sir Nicholas laughed at me. "I forget that you now realize you're a daughter of Poseidon. I would love to see the look on Patrick's face if you decided to set your uncle on him. I met Lord Hades in my brief stay in the Underworld. He would do whatever his niece's asked him too. I mean no disrespect to him of course."

I laughed this time. "I know, he even kidnapped my mother because she was neglecting me."

Nick smiled. "Now, before I forget, Nina, would you like to come to my Death Day Party, this Halloween? It is my 500th Death Day, and I would be honored if you would care to attend. You may bring any of your friends as well, if that is your wish."

"Oh, Nick, I would love to come! It sounds so interesting! I'll ask Vati and Lav if they want to come, Luna too."

"Excellent!" Nick smiled at me. "I shall see you in two days time. It starts when the feast does and will be held in the dungeons." Sir Nicholas flew away. He was much happier now. I shook my head fondly at him and continued on my way to the library. I was searching for a spell that would help me read better. I really hoped I could find one.

At dinner that night, I told Lav and Vati about the Death Day party. They couldn't go, because they both had procrastinated doing their homework and now had to finish all of it. I shrugged and decided to ask Luna later. I knew Neville wouldn't want to go, and I'm pretty sure Fred and George will be pranking the feast and want to see their work in action. I overheard Ron, Hermione, and Harry talking about the party as well. It seemed they would be going too.

On Halloween night, Lav, Vati, and I went separate ways. I walked down to the dungeon and met Myrtle about halfway down. She smiled lightly at me and asked me if I was going to the party too. I nodded and began to ask questions about it. She was delighted to answer them. She really was very nice once you got to know her. She acted the way she did to keep people away from her bathroom because that was where she was murdered. If she ever met u with me, it was in an abandoned classroom a little ways down the corridor.

When we got to the party, Sir Nicholas greeted us, and then we went to mingle. We met up with Peeves and the Grey Lady. They were having a debate about which way was the best to get people soaked. Peeves was fighting for water balloons and Helena was fighting for flooding bathrooms. Uh oh, Myrtle's going to flood her bathroom now. Thanks so much, Helena. I walked up behind the two. "Actually, the best way to get someone wet is to find a Water Mage and have them use their Mage magic on the person." Peeves and Helena flipped around and smiled at me. They both agreed that my way was the best way to get someone wet.

I looked at the door to see Harry, Ron, and Hermione walk in. I didn't feel like talking to them, so Peeves and Myrtle went over to distract them. I love having ghost friends. I was about to turn back to my conversation with Helena when Hermione made a rude comment about Myrtle. I was about to go over and tell her off for it, but Peeves beat me to it. I smiled gratefully at him. He stuck his tongue out at me.

Sir Nicholas was about to get up to make his speech, when the dungeon went silent. I looked around for the cause. I saw many headless men on horses make their way through the crowd. Oh no, it's the Headless Hunt. Poor Nick. The leader, Sir Patrick I'm guessing, talked to Harry. When they finished their conversation, the Golden trio left. I don't think Nick noticed. I marched up to Sir Patty. "Yo, dude." He turned to me. "You know who I am?" He shook his head. "I'm the daughter of Poseidon, your lord's niece."

Sir Patty gasped. He quickly, along with all the other ghosts except the Hogwarts ones, knelt. "What can I do for you, my lady?" he asked. I rolled my eyes.

"Quit being annoying before I set Cerberus on you." Patty gulped and nodded his head. I flipped my hair over my shoulder, said a quick goodbye to Nick, Helena, and the Friar John, most people call him the Fat Friar, and stormed out the door. I heard all the ghosts start talking again just as I turned the corner. I was very soon out of earshot. I made my way up to Myrtle's bathroom to see what she was up to.

There was a crowd of people outside. I shoved my way to the front. On the wall, there was a message. THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE. Hanging underneath, was a ball of fluff. It was Mrs. Norris. She was petrified. I tried to feel bad, but I couldn't. That was the only animal who didn't like me, well, except monsters. They don't count. That cat was down right nasty. She bit me! Thank the gods I had nectar to disinfect it. Stupida gatta!

**Hope you enjoyed.**


	28. Chapter27:Legends,Forgetting,a ndBludger...

**Thanks for the reviews IAmTheTaintedAngel and Grey-Rain-Cloud. Sorry about not using any of your songs Sassiecassie218, but they didn't really fit as you'll see. Hope you like it, I put in a part I've been meaning to for a while and finally got a chance to.**

Chapter Twenty Seven: Legends, Forgetting, and Bludgers

"What do you think the writing on the wall was about," Lavender asked.

"I don't know," Vati said. "What's the Chamber of Secrets? I've never heard of it.

"I have," I told my best friends. "It's a chamber that was built by Salazar Slytherin. The entrance is secret and can only be accessed by Slytherin or his heirs. There is supposedly a monster in there that kills muggleborns. I read it in Hogwarts: A History. I was talking to Helena Ravenclaw, she's the Grey Lady, and she said that the monster was not brought to the castle to kill muggleborns. She said it was brought to defend the castle in times of great need and hardship. Overtime, the heirs of Slytherin started to use the creature to kill instead of save. No one knows what the monster is."

"Wow, I keep forgetting you know all this stuff," Lav said. I rolled my eyes and Vati slapped her over the head for her bluntness. She really lacks tact sometimes. "Wait, Nina, if someone is really attacking muggleborns, they might attack you. You're technically a muggleborn. You could die!"

"Chillax, Lav, I'll be fine. I'm Nina Jackson, daughter of Poseidon, slayer of the Chimera and Echidna. Don't worry," I told her. I wasn't so sure. Who knew what this monster was. I didn't want to admit it, but I was worried. I could get really hurt. Lav and Vati were safe, they were half bloods, two types of half bloods. I was very scared.

We went to History of Magic next. I overheard Hermione complaining about how she had to leave her copy of Hogwarts: A History. Get over it. When we sat down, she asked Professor Binns about the Chamber of Secrets. "I deal with facts, Miss Granger, not myths and legends. In September of that year, a subcommittee of Sardinian sorcerers-"

Hermione raised her hand again. Miss Grant?"

"Please sir, don't legends always have a basis in fact?"

Professor Binns noticed he had everyone's attention except mine, Parvati's, and Lavender's. He began repeating what I said that morning except what the Grey Lady told me. I tuned out here. I saw no reason to listen to it again.

Later on, I heard a girl crying in the third floor bathroom. I walked in to see what was wrong. I saw Ginny Weasley curled up on the ground sobbing. I sat down next to her and pulled her into a hug. She wrapped her arms around and started crying into my shirt. I held her and rubbed her back. She pulled back, hiccupping. I smiled at her and pulled out my guitar. I strummed a few notes.

Where is the moment we needed the most

You kick up the leaves and the magic is lost

They tell me your blue skies fade to grey

They tell me your passion's gone away

And I don't need no carryin' on

You stand in the line just to hit a new low

You're faking a smile with the coffee to go

You tell me your life's been way off line

You're falling to pieces every time

And I don't need no carryin' on

Cause you had a bad day

You're taking one down

You sing a sad song just to turn it around

You say you don't know

You tell me don't lie

You work at a smile and you go for a ride

You had a bad day

The camera don't lie

You're coming back down and you really don't mind

You had a bad day

You had a bad day

Well you need a blue sky holiday

The point is they laugh at what you say

And I don't need no carryin' on

You had a bad day

You're taking one down

You sing a sad song just to turn it around

You say you don't know

You tell me don't lie

You work at a smile and you go for a ride

You had a bad day

The camera don't lie

You're coming back down and you really don't mind

You had a bad day

(Oh, on a holiday)

Sometimes the system goes on the blink

And the whole thing turns out wrong

You might not make it back and you know

That you could be well oh that strong

And I'm not wrong

(Yeah,yeah,yeah,yeah)

So where is the passion when you need it the most

Oh you and I

You kick up the leaves and the magic is lost

Cause you had a bad day

You're taking one down

You sing a sad song just to turn it around

You say you don't know

You tell me don't lie

You work at a smile and you go for a ride

You had a bad day

You've seen what you like

And how does it feel for one more time

You had a bad day

You had a bad day

Had a bad day

Had a bad day

Had a bad day

Had a bad day

Had a bad day

Ginny smiled at me, "Thanks, I needed that, bye Nina." She waved and I waved back. I looked at my guitar after she left. I used to love playing and singing. It wasn't the same anymore. It was so much more fun when Apollo was writing the songs with me. I missed him so much. No-I needed to stop thinking about him. It was time to enlist Vati and Lav's help.

"Hey Lav, Vati?"

"What's up, Nina?' Vati asked.

"I need help, I want to forget Apollo."

"Alright, get everything that he bought you that you don't need and bring it to the fire in the common room." I nodded and ran up to our dorm. I looked around and grabbed the photo album and the pictures I kept in my trunk. I summoned my guitar from my bracelet. I sat on my bed and stared at it for a minute. I remembered when Apollo got it for me.

_**Flashback...**_

_**I was nine. I was riding on Apollo's back. He stopped outside a music store. "Sparkles, what would you say i I bought you a guitar right now?'**_

"_**Never stop hugging you, why?"**_

_**Apollo walked into the music store and up to the front desk. "Morgan Ross to pick up the steel string acoustic guitar."**_

"_**Of course," the man said before walking into the back. He came back with a cherry wood acoustic. The man gave the guitar to Apollo who then gave the guitar to me. Flashback End**_

That had previously been the best day of my life. It wasn't anymore. I grabbed my things and ran back down to the fire where Lav and Vati were waiting for me. "Sorry I took so long, I was lost in memories."

My friends smiled sadly at me. "We figured. Now c'mon, let's burn this stuff." Lavender took my hand and dragged me up right in front of the fire. I took my bracelet off and laid the stuff in front of me. I looked at it all. I ran my fingers over the picture in the front of the album. A tear fell from my eye. I wiped it away quickly but I knew Lavender and Parvati saw it. "You don't have to do this."

I shook my head and picked up the album. I held it out, about to drop it in the fire when I pulled it to my chest. I clutched it and refused to let it go. Tears were streaming down my face. Lav and Vati wrapped me in a hug. They helped me bring all my stuff back to our dorm.

The next day, we went to the quidditch game. Harry was really good. He caught the snitch with a broken arm. I was impressed. When he landed, everyone rushed out onto the field to greet them. Lockhart shoved his way through. He pulled out his wand and tried to fix the bones. Instead, he made them disappeared. Poor, poor Harry.

**Hope you liked the chapter remember to review.**


	29. Chapter 28: Charms and Pink, Ew!

**Sorry I couldn't I update until now. I won't be able to as frequently on the weekends. Hope you enjoy the chapter. I introduce Tyson.**

Chapter Twenty Eight: Charms and Pink, Ew!  
Justin Finch-Fletchley, Colin Creevey, and Sir Nicholas were petrified too. I really missed my conversations with Nick. They were pretty much the only intellectual conversations you could get around these places.I loved Lav and Vati, but you could not get a sensible conversation from them.  
I went home to visit Percy over Christmas break. I really missed him. I went with Sally to pick him up. He was very surprised to see me. I slapped this one kid named Matt Sloan who made a comment about how I couldn't be related to Percy. He went after me and Percy went demigod on him. Apparently no one touches his sorellina. Overprotective much?  
I finally got to meet Tyson. He came over for Christmas. He was so sweet and I told him about the immortal world after everyone else had gone to bed. He believed me. I was so happy to have another sibling. I also explained how Sally didn't like me very much. He told me she was dumb and that I was the best sister ever. I laughed and told him I was probably the only sister he was ever going to get. He seemed a little put out by that.  
The next day, I received a present from everyone but Sally. I was used to that, but it still kind of hurt. It always had. Even though she didn't get me a present, she was still being a lot nicer to me. I wonder what happened?  
Percy got me a Baltimore Ravens jersey. They were my favorite team. I loved football. The only reason I liked the Ravens the best instead of the Giants was because the Ravens' color was purple. I started jumping up and down. I liked quidditch and all, but my heart would always belong with my football team. GO RAVENS!  
Tyson had made me something too. He had borrowed some metal scraps from my mother and made a beautiful silver necklace. Why did Sally give him silver? She is clear-sighted. She must know Tyson is a cyclopes. The necklace had tiny links and a silver violet. It was beautiful. I gave Tyson a scarf a knitted at Hogwarts. Don't judge, I was bored and decided to make a Christmas present for my half-brother.  
Apollo sent me two more charms. One for cloths and one for weapons. I sighed as I clipped them onto my bracelet. Percy didn't know about the prophecy and I wasn't about to tell him. It was way too personal.  
Percy and I told Tyson about how I was a witch together. I didn't want to do it alone because I was afraid mia fratellino would be afraid of me. I loved him already. If he didn't like me, it would break my heart.  
While we were eating breakfast, Skittles flew in with a letter.  
I have a letter from Harry, Nina.  
Oh, why is he sending a letter.  
Something about the Heir of Slytherin.  
Thanks Skittles. Help yourself to some waffles.  
Skittles dove into my half-finished waffle. I rolled my eyes at my owl and opened the letter.  
Dear Nina,  
Hermione, Ron, and I made poly juice potion. It was the only way to find out if our suspicions were correct about the Heir of Slytherin. Ron and I snuck into the Slytherin common room, pretending to be Crabbe and Goyle. We asked Malfoy if he was the heir. He's not.  
I'm really worried about you and Hermione. So many muggleborns have been petrified already! I don't know what I'd do without you two. When you get back, please try to be safe.  
Your friend,  
Harry  
It was really sweet of Harry to be worried, but it didn't help any. I was worried plenty enough on my own, thank you very much. I sighed. What if I ended up being the muggleborn who got killed? Would Lav, Vati, and my brother come visit me in the Underworld?  
When I got back to Hogwarts, everything seemed to speed by. Before I knew it, it was Valentine's Day. The Great Hall was a bright pink. I threw up a little in my mouth. I will never complain about the Aphrodite cabin again. Compared to this, it was a boring beige.  
The worst part was Lockhart. He had on vivid pink robes. Absolutely disgusting. I was horrified. "Happy Valentine's Day! And may I thank the 46 people who have already sent me cards. Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all-and it doesn't end here!" Lockhart clapped his hands and a few dozen dwarves appeared. They were dressed like cupids. This must be classified as dwarf abuse. They were supposed to bring all of us our cards. Poor things.  
I got a lot of cards. Most of them were from guys telling me I was pretty. Lav, Vati, and I had fun burning them. Pink looks the best while it's burning. I felt bad for Harry. Ginny Weasley sent him a musical card. The lyrics weren't all that great and the dwarf could not sing. Talk about public embarrassment. It was horrendous.  
Harry's bag ripped while he was trying to run from the dwarf. Malfoy picked up a black book. He thought it was Harry's diary. I was about to yell at him for reading it, but Percy beat me to it. It turned out the journal was blank anyway. Take that Malfoy.


	30. Chapter 29: Basilisk and Petrification

**Sorry about not updating, I've been a little busy but should be back on track for awhile. ** **Tell me what you think of the chapter, it's a little surprising. Thanks for the reviews freethewolves1 and Lily. I realize the HP timeline and the PJO timeline are both off. Percy was born in 1993 and Harry was born in 1980, not 1990. I wanted it to b a little more modern, so I made them all born in 1990. The two stories do take place 13 years apart. Enjoy!**

Chapter Twenty Nine: Basilisk and Petrification

The next day, Harry ran up to me outside DADA. "We know who it is," the Boy-Who-Lived panted.

"You know who what is?" I questioned.

"The Heir of Slytherin, who let the monster out 50 years ago. It was Hagrid. We don't think he meant for it to kill anyone, but it did. Hagrid is the Heir of Slytherin."

"Alright, now that I don't believe. Hagrid may have another view about dangerous creatures, but he would never let something into the castle that would petrify someone."

"He was 13 when it happened, Nina. You didn't know him then."

"No, I didn't. WHat about the attacks now, though. He may have accidently set something on students 50 years ago, but he's smart enough not to do it again. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to attempt to learn something from the dimwit we're all forced to call a professor." I marched forward into the DADA classroom. How dare Harry claim that Hagrid was the Heir. Completely impossible. He is smart enough not to make the same mistake twice.

NANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANANA NANANANANAN

I sighed, why did Lav and Vati have to get Saturday detention today. I waved to them as they ran up to the Charms classroom to start their detention with Flitwick. They just had to be late to class all week. They were in the library, and kept getting sidetracked by their studying. I wonder what they were studying? Doubt it was Potions like they told Professor Flitwick.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione forced me to walk down to the quidditch pitch with them. They were talking about what the monster could be. Why couldn't they just give it a rest for one day? If you don't take a break, the stress levels build up which leads to a harder time concentrating which leads to taking a longer time in your task than you would have if you took a day off. I had learned that on my quest. Everyone needs a break. Unfortunately, we didn't get a real break. During our break, we were ambushed by monsters. It was just wonderful.

The Annoying trio had switched to talking about how Hagrid could sneak the monster into the castle. Would they stop blaming poor Hagrid. He is way too much like a cuddly bunny, albeit a giant cuddly bunny. He would never cause any real damage on purpose. Luckily for the trio, they didn't seem completely convinced Hagrid was the culprit. It was like there was just too much proof leading to him. If they had completely been convinced it was Hagrid, well let's just say I wasn't kidding when I said I could handle a knife. It's bad enough they suspect my friend, but Hagrid is supposed to be their friend too.

We were just about to leave the castle when Harry stopped. I didn't see him stop and rammed right into him. He fell face forwards. Oops. He quickly got up. He didn't seem phased that he was knocked to the ground. It must happen often. I wonder if it's only when people walk into him? Focus, Jackson. Harry said he was hearing the voice again. I had no idea what he was talking about. First, what does he mean again? Second, why can't the rest of us hear it? Wait, I remember Luna telling me Harry was a parselmouth. Maybe we couldn't hear it because it was a snake.

"Harry, what is it saying?" I asked.

"Rip, tear, kill."

It must be the monster. What snake can petrify people? I gasped and looked at Hermione. She had come to the same conclusion as I.

'We're going to the library!" I called over my shoulder as Hermione and I dashed to the library. When we got there, it was empty except for a Ravenclaw prefect. She waved kindly at us. I waved back, but Hermione dashed straight to the magical creatures section. She began looking through Magical Creatures and Where to Find Them. I began searching my memory for everything I could think of. I remembered as soon as Hermione found the passage.

_Of the many fearsome beasts that roam our land, there is none more curious or deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size and live hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wonderous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs,the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before it, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of a rooster, which is fatal to it._

"It all fit, the spiders have been fleeing the castle because of the Basilisk. Whoever the Heir is has been killing the roosters so the Basilisk doesn't get killed. Oh, but how has everyone been petrified instead of killed?" Hermione asked.

"Because no one looked it directly in the eye. Colin saw the Basilisk through his camera. Justin saw it through Nick. Nick is a ghost, so he couldn't die again. Instead, he was petrified."

"But what about Mrs. Norris? She didn't have a camera and all the hosts were at Nick's Death Day Party. Why isn't she dead?"

I held up a finger. I pulled that day out of my mental filing cabinets and pushed it to the front of my mind. "She saw the Basilisk's reflection. That was the night Myrtle flooded her bathroom. There was water on the floor. She saw the Basilisk's eyes in the water." Hermione nodded her head. We noticed the prefect was still there. We ran over to tell her what the monster is. She grabbed her bag and rummaged through it, pulling out a mirror.

'I'm muggleborn too. If the three of us are together, we'll be a huge target. We'll use it to look around corners." I nodded my head in agreement. "McGonagall is grading papers, we should tell her." We all got up and started towards Professor McGonagall's office. The prefect, Penelope Clearwater, led the way, checking around every corner.

We were a few hallways away when Penelope froze, her eyes glued to the mirror in her hand. Hermione wrenched it from her stone grasp and looked into it. Was she really that stupid? I gulped. The monster was just around the corner. Not only was I muggleborn, I was also a demigod. The monster wanted to kill me twice as much. I looked up to pray to my father, but never got the chance. Huge, glowing, yellow eyes were boring down at me. I screamed as I felt myself freeze up. Then, I lost sense of everything going on. I could hear muffled voices surrounding me. I recognized Lav's and Vati's. After what felt like a few seconds, I could no longer make out any sounds except for Madam Pomfrey. I heard her say no more visitors were allowed.

Lavender's POV

Vati and I were scrubbing the desks in the Charms classroom. After so many explosions, they were very filthy. Who knew explosions stained stuff green? II pulled off my glove and rubbed my eye. The chemicals were beginning to burn them. I was pulling my glove back on when Professor McGonagall ran into the room. She seemed out of breath and slightly hysterical. Harry and Ron were following closely behind her. I sighed, what did they do now? Then I realized something. Harry was supposed to be playing quidditch. He couldn't have done something wrong. "I need to see Miss Patil and Miss Brown, it's an emergency."

Flitwick nodded his head and waved us off. We quickly ran after McGonagall, stripping ourselves of our gloves as we ran. She led us to the Hospital Wing. Has there been another petrification? Oh no, Nina. I grabbed Vati's hand and dragged her forward. I collapsed to my knees in front of my friend's bed. No, this wasn't happening. She promised she would be safe. This is someone else. It's a student under polyjuice, or Nina is pulling a prank on us. Yeah, that was it. Any second now she would jump up and start laughing. Then, Vati and I would yell at her how it wasn't funny.

"My apologies, she is only petrified. We should have the potion ready in no more than a few weeks time.

Parvati's POV

"My apologies, she is only petrified. We should have the potion ready in no more than a few weeks time." McGonagall placed a hand on my shoulder as well as my sister's shoulder. I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to believe it. This was Nina we were talking about. She was the girl who killed the Chimera and Echidna. She couldn't be petrified just like that.

I grabbed my sister's hand. She looked up at me with tears flowing down her cheeks. I knew I was crying too. What if the potion didn't work? What if Nina was stuck like this forever. I could hear Harry and Ron coming up behind us. I felt them wrap me and my sister in a hug. I leaned back against Harry, still clinging to my sister. I don't care what it took, I was going to track down the monster that did this and rip it's head off.

I looked at Lav. "Lav, we need to write a letter to Nina's brother and her father. They both deserve to know." Lav nodded her head. She looked at me with a dead look in her eye. Then, she stood up, shrugging off Ron's arms. I did the same to Harry and together we walked off to the owlery.

_Lord Poseidon,_

_There has been a monster going around Hogwarts petrifying students. We hate to tell you like this, but Nina was petrified. We don't know what the monster is that did it. As soon as we find out we are going to kill it._

_Your daughter's friends,_

_Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil, daughters of Aphrodite_

The letter we wrote to Percy was exactly the same. Just a little less formal.


	31. Chapter 30: Near Death Experiences

**Here's the next chapter. It's Lav's and Vati's POV. They get revenge for Nina and Vati kills her first monster! Hope you like. This is the longest chapter yet.**

Chapter Thirty: Near Death Experiences

Lavender's POV

How I was furious when Madam Pomfrey wouldn't let Vati and I visit Nina. Why in the name of Hades would we attack any of the students. Thunder rumbled. Oops! Sorry Lord Hades. The rumbling stopped. Vati looked at me as if she knew I had something to do with the thunder. I smiled sheepishly at her. My sister slapped me on the back of the head. I pouted at her then sighed. It just wasn't fun anymore without Nina.

I missed the other third of our trio so much and I knew Vati did too. Neville was a little off himself. Luna had completely forgotten about Nargles she was so devastated. The poor girl, Nina was her first friend. We all loved Luna, but Nina and her had a special bond. Even the ghosts seemed drearier without Nina. She was friends with most of them. The whole castle, life itself, was just blah without my sister in all but blood. I hoped the potion would be ready soon.

I heard loud footsteps coming up behind me. I turned around with Vati to see Harry and Ron skidding up behind us with a crumpled piece of parchment. It had been ripped out of a library book. If a child of Athena saw that, well let's just say we would have a couple funerals to plan. The two boys showed us the parchment and we gasped. Thinking back, I realized everyone had been looking into something where they would see the Basilisk's eyes but not directly. Everyone except Nina. I voiced my thoughts.

Harry and Ron looked a little baffled by that but shrugged it off. They told us how they thought they knew where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets was. Really, Slytherin, a girl's bathroom? That is just plain wrong. An announcement came on. We were all supposed to make our way to the common rooms. Harry, Ron, Vati, and I started running. We were about to turn up the staircase to get to the seventh floor, but the professors were blocking our path.

McGonagall spoke, "It has happened, a student has been taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself." Flitwick squealed, Sprout gasped, hands going over her mouth.

Snape was gripping the back of a chair very hard. "How can you be sure?"

"The Heir of Slytherin has left another message. Right underneath the first one. 'Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever.'"

Professor FLitwick started crying. I didn't blame him. I grabbed onto my sister for support as I started to silently cry. Who was brought down to the Chamber? It was definitely a girl.

"Who is it?" Madam Hooch voiced my thoughts. "Which student?"

"Ginny Weasley," said Professor McGonagall. Ron silently slid down the wall. His sister had been taken by the Basilisk. I quickly dried my tears and wrapped my arms around him. My sister at his other side. "We shall have to send all the students home tomorrow," continued McGonagall. "This is the end of Hogwarts. Dumbledore always said..."

There was a loud crash as Lockhart appeared. "So sorry-dozed off-what have I missed?" The idiot didn't notice everyone's depressed appearances. I growled deep in my throat. Is that idiot so thick he can't realize something bad has happened? The other teachers were looking at him in hatred. Frankly, I couldn't blame them.

Professor Snape stepped forwards. I grinned, this had to be good. "Just the man," he began. "The very man. A girl has been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Taken into the Chamber of Secrets itself. Your moment has come at last." Lockhart gulped.

"That's right Gilderoy," agreed Professor Sprout. "Weren't you saying just last night that you know where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is?"

"I-well-I," stuttered the idiot.

"Yes, didn't you tell me you were sure you knew what was inside it?" chimed in Professor Flitwick.

"D-did I? I don't recall-"

Professor Snape smirked. "I certainly remember you saying you were sorry you didn't have a crack at the monster before Hagrid was arrested. Didn't you say the whole affair had been bungled, and that you should have been given free rein from the first?"

"I-I really never-you may have misunderstood-"

"We'll leave it to you then, Gilderoy," said Professor McGonagall. "Tonight will be an excellent time to do it. We'll make sure everyone's out of your way. You'll be able to tackle the monster all by yourself. A free rein at last."

"V-very well. I'll-i'll be in my office, getting-getting ready." Lockhart left.

"Right," McGonagall continued, "that's got him out from under our feet. The Heads of Houses should go inform their students of what happened. Tell them the Hogwarts Express will take them home first thing tomorrow. Will the rest of you please make sure no students have been left outside their dormitories."

The rest of the staff left the corridor. Vati, Ron, Harry, and I ran back to Gryffindor common room. It was probably the second worst day of my life. The worst was when Nina disappeared. Vati and I sat with Fred, George, Ron, and Harry. Percy had gone to send a letter to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and then locked himself in his dormitory. It was the longest afternoon of my life. Near sunset, Fred and George went up to bed. It was too depressing for them down here with the rest of us.

Ron looked at us and said we should go see Lockhart and tell him what we knew. I agreed. The Gryffindors were so miserable and felt so bad for the Weasleys that no one tried to stop us. We quickly ran to Lockhart's office. We knocked and when there was no answer, Vati kicked the door in. "Remind me not to get on her bad side," I whispered to Harry. He nodded his head in agreement.

Lockhart was shocked to see us and jumped in front of whatever he was doing. He was packing his trunk! That idiot! I glared at him with a ferocity I didn't know I had. Harry began to tell him what he knew. Then, the two boys and Vati noticed what he was doing. Parvati did exactly what Nina would have done, she slapped him, hard. I was pretty sure you could hear that on the other side of the castle. Definitely not getting on her bad side.

Harry began interrogating Lockhart. The coward was running away! How dare he! Lockhart explained how he had obliviated the people who actually had done the stuff in his books and how he took the credit. What a disgusting man! Harry took Lockhart's wand and then led him t Myrtle's bathroom by wand point.

We asked the ghost how she had died. She was more than happy to elaborate. She had seen a pair of yellow eyes by the sink when she walked out of the stall, having heard a males voice in the lady's room.

Parvati's POV

I went over to examine the sink. I started with the basin. It was just a plain white sink bowl. I moved onto the faucet. There was lots of grime on it. I rubbed it off with the sleeve of my robe. There was a snake imprint on the side. I beckoned everyone over and we all examined it. Harry told it to open in parseltongue and a huge pipe opened up. The sinks had spread apart and left a gaping hole in the middle. Lockhart started to run so I kicked him behind his knee and Lav shoved him in. Better him than us.

"It's really quite filthy down here," came his voice. Shame, I was hoping the monster would eat him. No such luck. I looked at my sister. She held up three fingers. I grabbed her hand and together we counted to three. We jumped and started sliding down the pipe. I heard Ron and Harry behind us. I grimaced as we landed and I heard the crunch of tiny rodent bones. That was so gross.

"Remember," came Harry's voice from behind me, any sign of movement, close your eyes right away..." I nodded and we all cast Lumos. We walked a little ways and Lockhart fell to the ground. I flipped around rolling, my eyes. Lockhart rolled up and grabbed Ron's wand, pointing it at me. He threatened to remove our memories. I groaned, that wand was broken. It would probably backfire. I was right. The explosion caused the rock of the ceiling to collapse. It was about to land on me when Harry pulled me out of the way.

I looked up. We had been separated from the other three. "Lavender!" I shrieked. I needed to know my sister was okay.

"I'm right here, Vati. We're all alright. Well, Lockhart's managed to erase his own memories and knock himself out in one go. That's actually a blessing. Go on with Harry. Save Ginny. We'll clear a path for you."

"Alright," I called back. There was a clunk and Lav's head popped into my sight. I ran forward and she shoved something through the gap. I grabbed it, it was her twin daggers. Elpída and Písti, meaning Hope and Faith. I smiled my thanks at her. Harry looked at us funny but didn't question it. Together, Harry and I began to run forwards. It meant the world to me that Lav would give these to me. A demigod giving someone else their weapon was a sign of complete trust in that person.

When we reached the next door, Harry once again told it to open in parseltongue. The door creaked open, and we ran through. We were at the end of a long, dimly lit chamber. At the end, I saw a red splotch. I grabbed Harry's arm and yanked him forwards. Together, we ran towards Ginny. I knelt down on her side. Harry was opposite of me. I reached a hand out to feel her pulse. Her skin was so cold. Ginny's pulse was there, but it was very faint. She had a little less than an hour if my calculations were correct. I hoped they were.

A man appeared. Harry told me he was Tom Riddle. Strange, it doesn't look like he's all there. Harry asked him to help us. Then I realized something. Tom had Harry's wand. When I pointed this out, Riddle told us how he was Lord Voldemort. Wow, who would have thought Voldemort's name was an anagram. Voldemort revealed himself as the Heir of Slytherin and how he had made everyone think that Hagrid was the Heir. How dare he!

Music began to flow from the other side of the Chamber. Riddle stopped his tirade and we all looked in the direction of the noise. It was Skittles and a phoenix. Harry told me it was Dumbledore's. Between them, the two beautiful birds were carrying a hat. They dropped it next to us. It was the Sorting Hat. How was that supposed to help!

Riddle laughed at our misfortune. Memory or not, he had no idea what I had up my sleeves. I had used my wand to shrink Elpída and Písti. I pulled them from my pockets and enlarged them. Tom gulped slightly. "Let's see how you fare against the Heir of Slytherin." The memory said something in parseltongue that I couldn't understand. The statue of Salazar Slytherin's mouth opened. A huge snake slithered out of the huge hole. I gulped, I was face to face with the King of the Serpents. I squeezed my eyes shut. I heard the creature shriek and opened my eyes in shock. Skittles and the phoenix were clawing it's eyes out. I threw up a little in my mouth as the eyes fell to the floor in front of me. They could no longer do any harm. They were powerless.

Skittles landed on my shoulder and nipped my ear affectionately. She must like me a lot to do that. Riddle yelled at the basilisk to sniff us out. I gave the knife in my left hand to Harry and pulled the bracelet off my wrist. It immediately changed into a sword. I'm going to have to erase Harry's memories after this one. I ran forward and jumped onto the Basilisk's back. I ran up the creature as it started to slither towards Harry. Harry reached down to the Sorting Hat and pulled out a sword. Sweet. Harry ran forward and drove the sword and the knife I had given him up into the Basilisk's mouth at the same time I shoved Lav's dagger and my sword down between the Basilisk's eye sockets. It howled and began to flail. I gripped the handles of the weapons to keep myself from going flying. Harry wrenched his weapons from the roof of the creature's mouth. With a loud clunk, the Basilisk was dead.

Tom started screaming at us. I looked over at Harry. He was pulling a Basilisk fang from his arm. He staggered over to a little black diary. I guess that's what the memory is anchored too. Harry stabbed down and Tom screamed. He faded into nothingness. Ginny woke up and realized Harry was dying. I looked at the phoenix who nodded to me. I stopped worrying about Harry. I knew that the phoenix would heal him. During Harry and Ginny's conversation, I shrunk the Basilisk eyes, grabbed a Basilisk fang, shrunk the fang, managed to cut a 2' by 2' piece of the hide off, shrunk that, and put everything in my pockets.

I looked back at Harry, who was standing and holding the sword of Gryffindor. I beckoned to Ginny to go on ahead. She happily complied. "I'm really sorry, Harry, but I can't have you knowing my sister's and my secret." I raised my wand. "Obliviate." I erased Harry's memory of the weapons I had used and made him think I had used different spells. Harry shook his head when I was done. He took my hand and led me out behind Ginny.

When we reached the rock blockade, Lav and Ron had managed to make a hole big enough for us to squeeze through. Ginny went first, then me, then Harry. We all grabbed onto each other and Harry grabbed a hold of the phoenix's tail. Lav grinned at me. I had just slain my first monster.


	32. Chapter 31: Waking Up and Papa

**Poseidon is in this chapter. Nina wakes up and they go home. Don't forget to review. I love reading them. Also, don't forget to send in any ideas you might have and I'm always open for songs. I may or may not put a song in the next chapter. There is Greek and Italian. I kóri mou means my daughter. Sti thálassa prinkípissa means sea princess. S 'agapó , paidí mou means I love you my child. Ti amo troppo, Papa means I love you too, Dad. Enjoy the chapter it is in Nina's POV again.**

Chapter Thirty One: Waking Up and Papa

I heard another voice near me. I felt a gunky liquid being forced down my throat. It tasted like apple juice. I hate juice so much. I groaned as I forced my eyes open. My mouth tasted disgusting, a mix between juice and mayonnaise, which is weird. I don't remember eating mayonnaise. Everything around me was bright white. I couldn't see anything more than grey blobs. There were two around my bed.

One of the voices was female and the other was male. Both voices sounded very familiar. I recognized the female voice as Madam Pomfrey, "Child, nod your head if you can hear us." I nodded my head slowly. It hurt to move. Everything was beginning to come into focus.

I could now recognize the black hair and tan skin of the man. "Nina, koritsáki, how are you feeling?" I concentrated on the man. I began to recognize him. He looked just like my brother.

"Fratellino, is that you?"

"No, I kóri mou, I am your father."

"Papa, what are you doing here?"

"Your friends sent me a letter. They told me what happened. I came to see how you were."

"I feel awful. My entire body hurts and everything looks fuzzy. It is clearing up, though."

"It is a wonder you can see at all, Miss Jackson. We have no idea how you even survived that experience," Madam Pomfrey started. I felt my dad grab my hand and squeeze it. He didn't seem to appreciate the reminder that I almost died. "You looked the Basilisk in the eye directly. You should not be alive." Madam Pomfrey left.

I tried to sit up. I could see everything clearly now. My dad noticed my struggle and helped me sit up against my pillows. He moved onto the side of the bed and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I leaned into his embrace. I couldn't believe he was here. He actually took time away from his godly duties just to make sure I was okay. No adult had ever done something that big for me. I looked up at him and he smiled gently down at me. He brushed my side bangs out of my face.

Madam Pomfrey had begun to wake up the other students. I guess since I had my father here, she did me first. When Sir Nicholas was awake, he smiled at me. I waved at him. He bowed his head slightly to my father who nodded his head at the ghost. Sir Nick floated from the room. Madam Pomfrey moved onto Penelope next. When she woke up, she walked over to me and gave me a hug, whispering her thanks. Without me and Hermione, she might be dead right now. She shook hands with my father and gave me one last smile before walking out. At my father's confused look I told him how she was with me when the Basilisk attacked. He nodded his head and pulled me even closer. Next came Justin Finch-Fletchley. He sent me a confused look. I shrugged the best I could with an all powerful god clinging to me like I was his lifeline. Next came Colin. The excitable first year waved enthusiastically at me. I waved back. Next came Mrs. Norris. "Why's there a cat in a hospital bed?" my father asked.

"I don't know. She's the caretaker's cat. I personally don't like her. That's saying something, I love all animals. Except monsters, but I like some monsters." Mia papa laughed at me. Mrs. Norris hissed at me before running off to find Filch. Papa glared at the cat. I giggled, my papa was overprotective just like mia fratellino. Hermione was the last one to wake up. When she sat up, her eyes immediately fell on my and my dad. She looked very confused, a funny look on her.

"Nina, who's that?"

"Hermione, meet my dad, Papa, meet Hermione Granger. She was petrified with me and Penelope." He smiled at her and held out his hand.

"Pleasure to meet you," he said.

"Hello Mr. Jackson, it is nice to meet you too. I thought Nina said you were lost at sea."

"I was, so to speak. I just met my children last summer. Call me Poseidon. Nina and her brother took their mother's maiden name." Hermione smiled and nodded her head.

"Well, I'll leave you two to catch up, then." She walked out of the room. I groaned and buried my face in my father's shirt.

"You don't like her?" my father asked.

"Well, no I don't. That's not why I was groaning," I said, removing my face from my dad's chest.

"Great, I didn't want to insult one of your friends so I didn't say anything. She is way too much like Athena." My father shuddered. I giggled at his antics. "So why did you groan?"

"Last year, we were talking about our parentage. I told people I didn't know because I had never met you. Somehow the whole school found out. Now everyone is going to be bugging me about how I found you."

Dad laughed. "I think you'll be fine. So, how did you like Tyson?"

I sat up eagerly. "Oh, he is so sweet, Papa. After the first five minutes of knowing him he treated me like I was his big sorella, and I already think of him as another fratellino. Percy loves him a lot too. He already really good with metal, too. Look at the necklace he made me," I said all in one breath. I lifted the necklace off my chest to show Papa. He was very impressed.

"I thought of making him the immortal master of my underwater forge when he was old enough. I can assume you agree?" I nodded my head. My dad smiled at me. "I must go now, sti thálassa prinkípissa. S 'agapó , paidí mou."

"Ti amo troppo, Papa." I said back. He may have spoken in Ancient Greek, but I was going to stick to Italian. My dad ruffled my hair and stood up. I glared at him as I tried to straighten it. He grinned at me before disappearing into the mist. He left behind the smell of the sea.

Madam Pomfrey came back in and gave me my clothes. She set up a privacy screen as I changed. When I was dressed, she led me down to the Great Hall for the feast. When I got there, everyone started whispering. Lav and Vati lept from their seats and hugged me. I hugged them back. "Sorry I took so long. My dad came to visit. Thank you guys for telling him." I got two equally wide grins in response. The hug was quickly joined by Neville and then Luna. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred, and George were quick to join in. I gratefully sat down when they let go, but was speedy to jump back up when Hagrid arrived. Vati told me he was arrested.

"You alright, there, Nina?" I smiled at him and nodded my head, wrapping my arms as far around him as they would go. Almost three-fourths of the hall joined us. When everyone sat down, Dumbledore began his mini pre-feast speech. He thanked Madam Pomfrey for her healing skills, he congratulated Professor Sprout on her Mandrakes, and he clapped for Professor Snape and his brewing skills. I clapped along with everyone else.

On the train ride home, I told Lav, Vati, Fred, George, Nev, and Luna what it was like being petrified and how I got petrified. I was about to tell them about my dad when we got a visitor. It was Draco Malfoy and his cronies. "Hey, Jackson. I heard your dad finally got enough backbone to come talk to you. What was it like when he told you how he hadn't wanted you all these years?"

I rolled my eyes along with the rest of the compartment. "Get lost, Malfoy," said Fred.

Malfoy glared at him. "It was lovely meeting my father _again,_" I said, putting emphasis on the last word. "He was telling how he was worried about me being all the way here in England and how I should stop getting myself almost killed. Apparently it's really starting to stress him out." Everyone laughed at Malfoy's shocked face. I didn't tell anyone but my closest friends that I had finally met my father. Malfoy left the compartment. I looked around at my friends. These guys were great, but I couldn't help but stop and wonder what trouble I would get myself into at camp.


	33. Chapter 32:FratelliePrincipessaAndrome d...

**I wou;d like to start by saying I don't own Don't Stop Believin' by Journey. I used your song Sassycassy218. Hope you like the chapter and thanks for the review. This is the start of SoM and I fit a little less than half the book in this one chapter. It is very long. Enjoy.**

Chapter Thirty Two: Fratelli e Principessa Andromeda

I was on border patrol with the Ares cabin. They liked me well enough, even if their father didn't. I was talking to Mark and Sherman as we sat underneath Thalia's Pine. I looked at the tree as some brown pine needles fell onto my head. I rubbed the trunk. This tree was my cousin. Thalia, the daughter of Zeus, had been transformed into a tree when she was an inch away from death. Last summer, when I couldn't sleep at night, I would come talk to Thalia. It almost felt like she was listening. Thalia had been poisoned and was dying. That was very bad. Not only would I miss my cousin, who I had never technically met, the tree strengthened the barriers around camp that kept monsters from getting through. As it s the barriers are weak from the poison. The really strong monsters can pass through.

Mark and Sherman jumped up with the rest of their siblings. Oh no, it's the Colchis Bulls. They were bronze bulls made by Lord Hephaestus. They were the size of elephants and could breath fire. I pulled Mov from it's sheath and summoned a water whip to my left hand. Thank the gods I'm ambidextrous. Even with eleven warriors, we were losing badly. I saw a grey taxi pull up just as I managed to dent one bull. My brothers and Annabeth jumped out.

Percy and Annabeth ran up followed closely by Tyson. We resumed the fight. Percy managed to cut off one horn. Percy started to yell at Tyson to get back, but Annabeth told him not too. Tyson ran forward and I let him through the barrier. He wasn't powerful enough to make it through by himself, yet. Tyson ran forward and straight to my brother's side. The fire whipped around him and he didn't even notice. Oh yeah, cyclopes are immune to fire. Mia fratellino punched the bull and it became very dazed. After a little while more of fighting, we managed to kill the bull. I gave Tyson the head of the one he bashed and told him to melt it down and make something at the forge. He seemed thrilled to do so.

Chiron told us how he was being forced to leave because of Thalia's tree being poisoned. Lavender started saying things that would make even the toughest sailor blush. Vati slapped her upside the head and she looked up, blushing. Chiron smiled gently at her. We all started laughing. "It isn't fair," Percy said. "Why is Mr. D. punishing you, Chiron? Everyone knows you think of the campers as though they were your children. Even the ones you never got to know. That's like Mr. D. accusing you of poisoning you own flesh and blood."

"Percy, Mr. D. had to punish someone," Chiron started.

"Besides of himself," I grumbled.

Chiron sent me a look and I raised an eyebrow at him. "It is more like he is punishing me for not preventing it." I stood up and hugged the centaur I considered a second father. He was as close as I could get to one with my real dad being an Olympian and all. Don't get me wrong, I love my dad and everything, I just need someone to talk to sometimes. Chiron is that someone. Everyone else joined our hug. Chiron smiled sadly at us before leaving.

I lead Tyson to the pavilion where everyone was sitting. I held Tyson's hand as everyone stood up. I wiped the tears from my eyes. Beckendorf and Silena flashed me smiles as I stood with Tyson and Percy. Vati and Lav had run off to the Aphrodite table and Annabeth to the Athena table. "Who invited that?" someone at the Apollo cabin murmured. I sent them a death glare. He whimpered and looked down.

"Well, well if it isn't Peter and Carina Johnson. My millenium is complete."

"Percy," my brother said.

"And Cristina," I continued.

"Jackson," we said together. Tantalus glared at me from where Chiron usually sat. He was replacing my favorite centaur. I hated him from the moment I met him last week when Lav, Vati, and I arrived. Professor Snape had apparated us here. He was a grandson of Hades. That explains how the troll heart got here.

"That boy," Dionysus told Tantalus, "you need to watch him even more than you have to watch his twin."

"Ah," Tantalus said. "That one."

'Oh, go chase a muffin," I snapped at the man who belonged in the Fields of Punishment.

He glared at me before turning to my brother. "I am Tantalus. On special assignment here until, well, until my Lord Dionysus decides otherwise. And you, Percy Jackson, just like I told your sister, I do expect you to refrain from causing any more trouble."

My brother was about to retort when I stepped on his foot, something I had done to get him to shut up since we were 6. Tantalus tried to eat some food, but he epically failed. The food just skidded away from him. My brother realized who he was. I beckoned Tyson over to our table. "Oh no, the monster stays here. We must decide what to do with it.

"Mia fratello non è un si. Tyson è un lui. Se si sta solo andando a insultarlo, chiudi il becco!"

"Excuse me?" Tantalus asked. Oops, I switched to Italian again.

"What I meant was 'My brother is not an it. Tyson is a he. If you are just going to insult him, shut your face!" Everyone gasped. Tantalus shut his face. Percy and I walked to the Poseidon table but not before Percy gave Tyson a high five and I kissed his cheek.

"Now," said Tantalus. "The Jackson twins and Annabeth Chase have seen fit, for some reason, to bring this here." Tantalus waved a hand toward Tyson. I was about to rise to the bait, but Percy pulled me back down. Tantalus began insulting Tyson without doing so outright. Very Slytherin of him.

I heard a voice in my head. _Please look after your brothers, Christina. _It was my father. The space above Tyson's head began to glow and form a trident. I grinned at my half-brother and beckoned him over. He smiled and walked towards me, sitting down. The camp laughed at my brother and I, but I just rolled my eyes at them and hugged Tyson. Tantalus laughed and said that Tyson would be staying with us.

A few days later at the camp fire, Percy told Tantalus of the coordinates in the Sea of Monsters he had received from the Grey Sisters. I groaned. Here we go again. The Golden Fleece was at this location, and it was the only thing that could save Thalia's Pine. Tantalus issued a quest to Clarisse who went up to the attic to get her prophecy.

_You shall sail the iron ship with warriors of bone,_

_You shall find what you seek and make it your own,_

_But despair for your life entombed within stone,_

_And fail without friends, to fly home alone._

When Tyson fell asleep, I looked over at my twin. He was still awake. I grabbed his hand and pulled him out to the beach. We sat curled up together with a six-pack of Coca-cola and our toes in the water. We filled each other in on what had happened since we last saw each other. He berated me for not being more careful and I reprimanded him for not always having Riptide on him.

Shortly thereafter, we were joined by a man in a jogging suit. He asked if he could join us and we said yes. After a little while, I realized this man was a god and quickly stood up, bowing. Percy followed my lead. The man laughed and waved us back down. He introduced himself as Hermes and then brought out his caduceus. There were two snakes on it named George and Martha. George asked me for a rat. I called SKittles through our mental bond and asked her to bring one. She was very confused but complied to my request.

"What is your favorite constellation?" Hermes asked us. My brother said Heracles, but I had to think about it. I thought back to the only two ancient demigods I admired, Theseus and Perseus.

"I like Perseus because he was one of the few demigods of ancient times that wasn't a pig and treated women fairly. He also didn't fight for honor or glory, he fought to keep his family safe. I also like Centaurus because it represents Chiron and I have come to think of Chiron as my surrogate father." Lord Hermes nodded his head in understanding and then gave us these vitamin pills and a canteen that held the four winds. Hey waved us goodbye after he told us to take the Princess Andromeda. Didn't Andromeda married Perseus in the myths? Argh! Stupid ADHD! Concentrate!

As Hermes disappeared, Annabeth and Tyson came running up. I whistled and four hippocampus appeared. One was extra large for Tyson. Thanks Daddy! So, with SKittles on my shoulder, I climbed onto the smallest. After all, I was the smallest of the bunch. The hippocampus told me her name was Princess and that a young mermaid had named her. I liked it. I was riding Principessa to the Principessa Andromeda with mia fratelli e Annabeth. The only bad part about this was Annabeth who still hadn't lost her arrogance just like Hermione hadn't. I hoped she would lose it soon.

Tyson and I were sad to say goodbye to our hippocampi when it was time to leave. We grabbed onto the rope ladder and climbed up. We cautiously snuck through the halls to an ajar door. We looked inside and saw that it was an empty suite. I took one bed with Annabeth and Percy and Tyson took the other. While Annabeth and Tyson were sleeping, Percy told me about the dream he had about Grover. Wherever that fleece was, Grover was with it and I wasn't going to let my friend die. Percy and I fell asleep together on the couch.

The next morning, Annabeth woke us all up. It was five in the morning! "What the Hades, Annabeth. I don't even get up this early at school!"

"Quiet," she hissed at me. "There's someone out there it sounds like-like Luke." I gasped and moved to the door, putting my ear against it.

"Sir," came a gruff, scratchy voice, "I smell something behind this door. It smells like demigod."

Another voice started to speak. "Open it. No one is up this early. We'll catch them by surprise." That was definitely Luke. I jumped back and pulled out Mov. The door burst open and Chris Rodriguez burst forward. He joined the titans? I looked sadly at him. He was really nice to me and I considered him another brother. I thought he had just been staying with his mother for a few weeks into the summer. I saw guilt flash across his eyes swiftly before he hardened his glare and turned away, unable to look at me without feeling immense guilt.

Chris was followed by what looked like human/bear hybrids. I gasped, recognizing from a myth. "You recognize them, Christina, don't you?" said Luke who had just walked in. I nodded my head. "Why don't you tell people who they are."

"They're Agrius and Oreius, sons of Polyphonte and a bear. They're supposed to be cannibalistic," I gulped as the larger on took a step toward me. Chris noticed this and said that he would take me. The large one growled but grabbed mia fratelli. The smaller one grabbed Annabeth. Chris took Mov from my hand and held it to my throat. "Don't touch me you traitor," I hissed at him.

"I'm sorry, Nina, but I couldn't live like that anymore. This was the right choice. I don't want you getting hurt, Nina. Join the titans."

"Never," I snapped back. "Kronos is cruel and abuses his power. I will never join them." I stepped backwards onto Chris' foot and grabbed Mov from his hand. I flipped around and hit his temple with the hilt. He fell to the floor unconscious. The larger bear/human dropped my brothers in surprise and accidently knocked Luke over the rail and onto the deck below us. Percy pulled out Riptide and stabbed the one holding Annabeth. It dropped her and the four of us ran to a lifeboat. As we were going down, I caught one last glimpse of Chris. He mouthed the words _I'm sorry _before dropping his head back down.

We floated for quite a while. As the sun was beginning to rise, we landed on the coast of Virginia. How did the Princess Andromeda travel 530 nautical miles in one night? Never mind, I don't want to know. Annabeth led us to a hide out she had made with Thalia and Luke when they had run away from their homes. I was scared Luke would find us easily here, but Annabeth waved it off saying Luke had probably forgotten about it. Annabeth and Percy waited inside and I sat outside on watch. Tyson left to go find some donuts in the middle of the woods. Really Percy? That is not how you use your brother's gullibility. You ask him to go find some pizza or some peanut butter fudge. Percy also asked for juice. I'm pretty sure that;s just because he wanted to find a way to annoy me and juice never failed to accomplish that task.

I was really bored where I was so I set up a ward where only Percy, Annabeth, Tyson, and I would be able to hear anything going on in this area. I pulled my guitar from my bracelet. I still didn't enjoy playing like I did when I was friends with Apollo, but it never failed to calm me down after a stressful event. I counted what happened this morning as very stressful. When I finished tuning, I started strumming a song Apollo had taught me.

Just a small town girl

Livin' in a lonely world

She took the midnight train

Goin' anywhere

Just a city boy

Born and raised in South Detroit

He took the midnight train

Goin' anywhere

A singer in a smokey room

A smell of wine and cheap perfume

For a smile they can share the night

It goes on and on and on and on

Strangers waiting

Up and down the boulevard

Their shadows searching

In the night

Streetlights, people

Livin' just to find emotion

Hidin', somewhere in the night

Workin' hard to get my fill

Everybody wants a thrill

Payin' anything to roll the dice

Just one more time

Some will win

Some will lose

Some were born to sing the blues

Oh, the movie never ends

It goes on and on and on and on

Strangers waiting

Up and down the boulevard

Their shadows searching

In the night

Streetlights, people

Livin' just to find emotion

Hidin', somewhere in the night

Don't stop believin'

Hold on to the feelin'

Streetlights, people

Don't stop believin'

Hold on

Streetlights, people

I heard clapping. I looked up to see Tyson holding a box of donuts. Where in Poseidon's name did he find those. He also had some grape juice. Yuck! "You are really good, Nina. Why don't you sing more?" my half brother asked as he passed me the juice. "Percy, said this was for you."

I grimaced and pushed the juice back towards Tyson. "Tyson, Percy was just messing with us. I don't drink juice. To answer your question, I used to play a lot more. That was when I was friends with Lord Apollo."

"You are not friends with him anymore?" Tyson asked.

I smiled and shook my head. "No, little brother. He did something that hurt me very bad and it's taking me a long time to forgive him because he was my closest friend and the person I entrusted practically everything too."

"Oh," Tyson said. He looked rather put out by that. "Were you happier when he was your friend?" Ah, children and their innocence.

"Yeah, I was. It's just not the same without him. I have my family and my other close friends, but it's like everything is just flying by me now. I can't stop to appreciate anything because the world was only beautiful when he was with me to enjoy it." I didn't notice I had started to cry a little until Tyson hugged me, asking me not to cry. I smiled and hugged him back. We were interrupted by a crash. Percy and Annabeth ran out.


	34. Chapter 33: Zombies and Circe

**I am celebrating my longest chapter at a little over 3,000 words. YAY!:) Thank you Lorelai Sofia Petrova for your review. Don't forget to send them in with any questions you have about the story or any songs or other stuff you might want me to add. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Thirty Three: Zombies and Circe

There was a hydra standing right in front of us! Now, normally I can keep a pretty cool head, but this thing had five of them. I gulped and pulled Mov from its sheath. Percy had pulled out Riptide and Annabeth had her knife. She glared at me like this was all my fault. I turned to see Tyson holding a rather large branch. I thought back to how Heracles had beaten the thing. "Fire!" I shouted.

"Where?" Percy yelled back.

"No, we need fire to kill it. Tyson I'm going to light your branch on fire. When we cut off a head, burn the wound so that no more grow back!" My brother nodded. I pulled out my wand, "Incendio." The branch caught on fire and Tyson began brandishing it. We all ran forward to try and kill it. I managed to stab one head but not cut it off. Finally, Percy chopped one off. Tyson ran forwards and burned it. We continued this until only one head was left, the one that couldn't be cut off.

"Move aside," I heard from behind me. I flipped around to see a civil war vessel with its cannons aimed at the hydra. Tyson grabbed me around the waist and pulled me to safety while Percy did the same with Annabeth. "Fire!' came the voice who had spoken earlier. I recognized it. It was definitely a girl's voice. Wait a minute, warship, girl, gruff voice. It could only be...

"Clarisse, is that you?" I called out.

My friends head popped out over the edge of the boat. "You miss me Jacksons?"

I grinned up at her and she tossed a rope down for us. I was the first one up followed by everyone else. I gave my friend a tight hug just as Annabeth popped up. She glared at me again. "This is all your fault, Jackson!"

"How is a hydra my fault?"

Clarisse glared at the girl. Annabeth continued, "If you hadn't been playing that stupid guitar of yours, the hydra never would have found us!" Clarisse and my brothers were watching us like we were a tennis match.

"I'll have you know, I had wards set up so only you, me, Percy, and Tyson could hear anything going on inside there!"

"Ugh, you're such a freak!"

I blinked back tears as Clarisse rounded on Annabeth. "Don't you dare call her a freak Miss Princess. Nina is amazing! Now, let's get you a tour of the C.S.S. Birmingham."

On the tour there were zombie Confederates everywhere. I guess when you lose a war you have to pay a debt to Ares since he's the god of war. Clarisse showed us the mess hall, the hammocks we would be sleeping in, and where she stayed in the captain's cabin. It wasn't much bigger, it just had privacy. I put the duffel bag Lord Hermes had given me on an empty hammock and skipped out after everyone else.

Clarisse also introduced us to the captain. He was very grumpy and I didn't like him at all. He kept glaring at us. Apparently, Confederates don't like northerners. We're still Yankees to them. Stinks for them.

This ship was traveling faster than normal ships could and it was straining the hull. I could tell with my sea powers, whatever it is they're called. Very soon, we were at the coast of Florida. I was a little nervous since this wasn't a sea faring boat, but it did alright, at first. It was all fine and dandy until we reached the entrance to the Sea of Monsters. We had to get past the two demons Charybdis and Scylla.

Charybdis is a huge head at the bottom of the sea who sucks in and takes the surrounding sea and anything in it into her mouth. She then blows out, releasing the water, but not anything else. Scylla was her sister. She stood at the top of a cliff and waited for ships to pass close enough to her. The monster had six heads and was always ready for a new meal.

I was below deck when the warning bells went off. I started to run to the upper deck but stopped when I saw Clarisse arguing with a mist image of Ares. He was threatening her. How dare he! Isn't it bad enough that idiota dio ruined my life. Now he's trying to make his daughter miserable! Ergh, I hate him. I ran up so Clarisse wouldn't know I had seen.

A few seconds later, Clarisse was by my side. Percy suggested we go around the monsters. I rolled my eyes and Clarisse explained that they would just keep appearing in our path. Then he suggested, "Choose Scylla than. Everybody goes below deck and we chug right past."

"No!" Clarisse yelled at him. "If Scylla doesn't get her easy meat, she might pick up the whole ship. Besides, she's too high to make a good target. My cannons don't shoot straight up. Charybdis just sits at the center of her whirlwind. We just steam straight towards her, train our guns on her, and blow her straight to Tartarus!" I didn't think that would work. They wouldn't be able to shoot guns at Charybdis fast enough.

The ship began to speed up even more. They were putting too much stress on the engine. Tyson was the only other person who seemed to notice. A man came up and said that the crew members were disintegrating in the heat and they needed help holding the engine together. Tyson offered to go down and help since he was basically fire proof and really good with machines. I told him to be careful.

Soon, we were in the whirlpool. Clarisse had us going in full reverse. If I was terrified before, I was frozen stiff now. The ship lurched but didn't move much. Charybdis was too powerful. I stumbled to the rail and held onto it with one hand. I raised the other in front of me. I focused on the water. It was hard with all the noise but I managed. I slowed it down as much as I could and we started to move backwards. The cannons and guns started to fire at her. She swallowed the cannonballs and then her mouth closed. She opened it and the cannonballs came flying out. The hit the ship with a ding and I focused all my magic on keeping us upright. I was draining all of my magic and soon I would be too weak to move until I got a little rest. Hopefully we would be out of here soon.

While concentrating on keeping us upright, I failed to notice us getting dangerously close to Scylla's cliff. A head shot down and would have grabbed me if Percy hadn't pushed me out of the way. Everywhere I looked, zombies were being snatched up by the monster. I tried to get up, but the magical exhaust was too great and I collapsed back onto my stomach. I rolled out of the way just in time to avoid a head. I saw Percy heading towards the door that led to the engine room. He couldn't get within five feet of it. There was too much heat radiating off of it.

Percy ran back to me and carried me to a lifeboat. He had tears streaming down his face. It dawned on me, Tyson wasn't going to make it. I grabbed onto the front of my brother's shirt and silently sobbed. I felt a bump as Percy leaped into a lifeboat. Annabeth was right behind him. I looked up in time to see Clarisse jump into another boat and Annabeth cut the ropes keeping the lifeboat attached to the ship. I clung to my brother as we plummeted to the ocean below us. I looked back to see the CSS Birmingham explode, with Tyson in it. My baby brother was gone forever. Percy and I held each other as we mourned for our fratellino. He never got to build amazing things like he had told me he wanted to. He never even met his father. I missed him already. Annabeth pulled out the thermos full of the winds and untwisted it a little too far. We were blasted away from the falling debris. I hoped Clarisse made it out alright. I looked into my brother's sorrow filled eyes one more time before passing out.

When I woke up, Annabeth and Percy were talking about the Great Prophecy. Annabeth was talking at the moment. "Percy, I don't know the full prophecy, but it warns about two half-blood children of the Big Three-the next two to live to the age of 15. That's the real reason Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades swore a pact after World War II not to have any more kids. The next two children of the Big Three who reach 15 will be dangerous weapons."

"Why," I asked sitting up and yawning. Percy gave me some ambrosia to help me heal faster.

"Because those heros will decide the fate of Olympus. They will make a decision that either saves the age of the Gods, or destroys it." Percy and I let that sink in. We were twins. We would reach 15 at the same time. We were most likely the heroes of the prophecy.

"That's why Kronos didn't kill us last summer," my brother said.

Annabeth nodded. "You could be very useful to him. If he can get you two on his side, the gods will be in serious trouble."

"But if it's us in the prophecy-" my brother prompted.

"We'll only kno if you both survive 3 more years. That can be a long time for a half-blood. When Chiron first learned about Thalia, he assumed there was another child of the Big Three out there. He assumed she was the one in the prophecy along with another half-blood. That's why he was so desperate to get her to camp safely and why he sent out so many satyrs. To search for another child of one of the Big Three. Then, she went down fighting and got turned into a pine tree and none of us knew what to think. Until you came along."

Percy and I tried to think of ways where we wouldn't be the prophecy children, but none of them worked. I sighed. I didn't want this. I never wanted any of this. Lav and Vati were probably worried sick about me. I had disappeared over night. I could die out here and my best friends would be none the wiser.

Even worse, I now had two prophecies hanging over my head. One about marrying my ex best-friend and one about my brother and me saving Olympus. Why is it always me? I have some of the worst luck. Why couldn't I have the original Perseus' luck. Nothing bad ever happened to him. But then, I realized something. Maybe awful events are there to make way for a better future. I crossed my fingers that that was the case.

I fell forward as we bumped into something. "Land," shouted my brother.

"A little late for the warning, fratello." The idiot just grinned at me sheepishly. I rolled my eyes and stepped out of the boat, the other two right behind me. We had landed in paradise. At the docks, where we landed, there was an assortment of ships, from yachts to old dugout canoes. A lady with a clipboard met us at the beach. She smiled and asked us if this was our first time at the spa. We nodded and she jotted that down on her clipboard. She led us inside to meet a woman named C.C. She was taking us all for make overs. I was a little nervous. Usually things like this turn into traps. Percy and Annabeth didn't seem to notice my uneasiness.

The lady, who introduced herself as Hylla, led us into a room where I heard a lady singing. She had a beautiful voice, but it wasn't as nice as Apollo's or even Artemis'. I need to stop comparing things to Apollo. It can't be good for my health. Hylla led us to a room that was all windows. The woman who was singing sat in there. She was gorgeous. She made me feel disgusting and fat just by looking at her. I looked down as the lady looked up. She tutted disapprovingly as she looked my brother, Annabeth, and me over. I instantly felt bad about making her unhappy. Deep in my mind a voice that sounded strangely like Professor Snape was telling me to focus and ignore the magic. I pushed the thought away. How could I have doubts about such a nice lady.

C.C. called Hylla over. "Hylla, take Annabeth and Christina on a tour, will you? Show them what we have available. The clothing will need to change. And their hair, my goodness. We will do a full image consultation after I've spoken with this young gentleman."

A ran a finger through my waist-length hair. Sure it was a little knotsy from not being brushed, but I liked it. "But...What's wrong with my hair?"

C.C. smiled at me. "My dear, you are lovely. Really! But you're not showing off your talents at all. So much wasted potential!"

"Wasted?" Annabeth asked.

"Well, surely you two aren't happy the way you are! My goodness, there's not a single person who is. But don't worry. We can improve anyone here at the spa. Hylla will show you what I mean. You, my dears, need to unlock your true selves!"

Annabeth's eyes glowed with longing. I knew mine were too. Hylla rushed us out of the room. First, she had us each take a shower. The soap, body wash, shampoo, and conditioner were all lilac flavored. Mmm... Then, we had herbal masks with cucumbers and everything. I hated that part. I had a really bad itch on my nose and couldn't scratch it. Next, Hylla had some other people do our make up. They put on soft pink blush, soft cherry lipstick, and a grey eyeshadow that made my green eyes pop. After that, Hylla brought out two white dresses that looked like they were from Ancient Greece. Like the type princesses would wear. I went behind a screen and donned the dress. I looked in a mirror. I was beautiful. The dress brought out my slim waist because of the golden string being used as a belt. It was sleeveless and showed off my slightly muscular arms. The bright white made them seem even tanner than they really were, and I'm pretty tan. We moved onto hair afterwards. Hylla herself did mine. She pulled the top half back and braided silver strands into it. Then, she pulled it into a bun at the nape of my neck. The bottom half hung loosely in gentle waves. More silver was braided into that.

Annabeth had the same dress as me and the same make up except her eyeshadow was a light pink. Her hair had strands of gold braided into it. It hung in curls down to just below her shoulder blades. She looked beautiful. I looked in the mirror to my right. I was just as beautiful. Hylla led us back to the room that had C.C. and Percy in it. I wonder what she did to Percy? When we got in there, C.C. was alone. She complimented us on how we looked and when I asked where Percy was, she just shrugged. I got a little suspicious. I searched for my brother through our mind link. _Percy, where are you?_

_I'm in the cage! She changed me into a guinea pig with some weird, pink potion. Get the vitamins from my pants pocket! It's under the loom._

I nodded my head and skirted around Annabeth and C.C. who were having a conversation. I looked over at Hylla who was watching me. I bent down and got the vitamins. C.C. still hadn't noticed me. I walked over to the cage and dumped the vitamins in, knocking the cage to the floor in the process. C.C. flipped around. She growled and lunged at me.

"How dare you! I am Circe, the Queen of Sorcery. You dare betray your own kind!'

"Only when they turn my brother into a guinea pig," I snarled back as I slashed at her with Mov. Percy was now standing next to me. A bunch of pirates were on my other side. Hey that's Blackbeard. He was a son of Ares. Holy Hephaestus that's Blackbeard! I grabbed Percy and Annabeth's arms and started running.

"Wait, take me and my sister with you!" It was Hylla. I nodded my head and she took the lead. I ran after her, Percy and Annabeth following behind. She led us to a small house near the docks. She ran in and rushed to a bedroom. "Reyna! Reyna, wake up, child. We need to leave!" The young girl who was lying in the bed sat up and jumped out of the bed. She looked to be a year younger than me. Hylla grabbed her hand and pulled her along with us to the docks. We jumped on the Queen Anne's Revenge. The pirates were after us. Oh yeah, this was Blackbeard's ship. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Percy and I used our Mage magic to make the ship set off.

When we were a few miles out to sea, Hylla thanked us all and told us it was time to part ways. She and her sister were not part of our quest. We smiled and nodded. The two girls jumped into the lifeboat. A few minutes later, they were off. I watched the progress of their boat until it was out of sight. I hope they are okay.


	35. Chapter 34: Cyclopes, Dreams, and Thalia

**This chapter is over 4,000 words. I have finished Sea of Monsters in my three longest chapters. Please review and give me some ideas for POA. Thanks I'm not sure if I'll update again or not today so enjoy!**

Chapter Thirty Four: Cyclopes, Dreams, and Thalia

We sailed on the Queen Anne's Revenge all day until we reached the island of Polyphemus. Yeah, Grover got kidnapped by the Cyclops from the Odyssey. At least the Golden Fleece was here too so we wouldn't have to make any other pit stops. The island looked nothing like I expected it too. There were no bones or anything even remotely gory. Frankly, it looked like paradise. The only thing scary was the rope bridge spanning the chasm between the two halves of the island.

I could feel the power of the Fleece. It felt so strong just to me. I can only begin to imagine what a satyr must feel. This must be why none of them ever come back from their mission to find Lord Pan. They get brought here because of the scent of the Fleece, which is probably very similar to Pan's scent, and killed by Polyphemus. I shuddered, if Grover hadn't been able to make an empathy link with Percy, he would most likely be dead. I would hate for my friend to be killed.

I looked over when Annabeth gasped. There was the Fleece on the other side of the island. It was surrounded by huge...sheep. I face palmed when I saw them. I looked up again and I saw a deer walk into the meadow with the sheep. Oh gods, I turned my head into Percy's side, unable to watch. The sheep had begun to tear the deer apart. Percy told me when they were done. I looked back to see a pile of white bones. Gulping, I realized that if we didn't get a move on, that's what Grover would look like very soon. We started looking for a way out when I saw a lifeboat from the CSS Birmingham. It was Clarisse's lifeboat. She was alive, for the time being.

Annabeth led us to a cliff. She and Percy began to climb up it. I stood at the bottom and tried to call them back down. They either didn't hear me or didn't want to listen to me. I sighed on concentrated on the misty air. I dissolved into mist and reappeared at the top of the cliff. Uh oh, there are more sheep up here. These sheep seemed content on eating the grass. I sighed in relief. I wasn't going to be eaten by piranha-sheep. At least not yet, we still needed to get the Fleece, which was guarded by piranha-sheep.

I sat down and waited for Percy and Annabeth to reach the top. About half an hour later they finally made it up. "How'd you make it up here so fast?" sneered Annabeth.

"I mist travelled," I replied before standing up and walking off. My two companions followed suit. We kept walking until we found a cavern that we were looking down into. Clarisse, Polyphemus, and Grover were inside. Clarisse was yelling at Polyphemus to fight her. Don't be an idiot, Clarisse! Clarisse was upside down and dangling from a pot of water. Grover was in a wedding dress. Percy had said that Polyphemus thought Grover was a lady Cyclops and wanted to marry him. Talk about awkward.

Clarisse accidently told Polyphemus that Grover was a man and a satyr. Big mistake there, Risse. Polyphemus turned on Grover and ripped the veil off, revealing curly, brown hair and little satyr horns. Now, Polyphemus wanted to eat Grover and marry Clarisse. Grover glanced up and saw us. He quickly began stalling for time. He told Polyphemus about a recipe for satyr that used mango chutney. Polyphemus left to get mangos. How dumb can you get? What satyr would know how to cook themselves?

When Polyphemus left, he closed the cave off with a huge boulder. We tried moving it, but to no avail. We sighed and fell back against the large rock. I jumped up. How stupid could I get? Am I a witch or not? I pulled my wand from its holster and pointed it at the rock. "Reducto!" Chunks of the rock came off. I need a stronger blasting curse. "Confringo!" The entire boulder burst into thousands of tiny pieces. Annabeth and Percy looked at me in awe. I ran in and they followed, still rather shocked. Oops, the blast brought Polyphemus' attention back to the cave.

In a quick moment of genius, Annabeth put on her invisibility hat and ran outside. She started yelling at the Cyclops. Nice, pretend to be Nobody and Polyphemus will go after you. Not nobody like nobody was there, but Nobody like what Odysseus called himself when distracting Polyphemus in the Odyssey. I got to work on untying Clarisse and Percy untied Grover while we listened to Annabeth and Polyphemus.

"Hello, ugly!" came Annabeth's voice.

"Who said that?" shouted Polyphemus.

"Nobody!"

I looked to see Polyphemus red in the face with anger. I guess he still held a grudge from when his eye was stabbed out by Odysseus. "Nobody! I remember you!"

"You're too stupid to remember anybody. Much less Nobody." Nice insult there. I had just finished freeing Clarisse when I zoned out, my mind slipping into the future. It was Annabeth and Polyphemus. Polyphemus managed to get in a lucky hit and smashed Annabeth into the cliff surface. We had to get her out of there.

"Percy," I whispered. "Get Annabeth out of there. She's going to get hurt." He nodded and ran towards her. He was too late. We all ran outside to see Annabeth's broken form next to the cliff face. I ran forwards. She was still breathing. Her hat was lying next to her. Then, I realized something. I had walked straight into Polyphemus' line of vision. Great, just great.

Mia fratello turned to me. "Alright, attack plan Macedonia." I grinned. It was a plan we'd learned at camp. Who knew Percy paid attention in some classes other than P.E. Percy held Polyphemus' attention by saying he was the real Nobody. Clarisse, Grover, and I snuck around his sides. The Cyclops was so caught up with his old enemy, he didn't even notice us. Talk about stupid people. Nothing we did to attack the Cyclops worked.

"Grover," I hissed at him. He glanced over at me. "Get Annabeth out of here. I don't want her getting hurt anymore." Grover nodded and ran over to Annabeth. He picked her up and ran to the bridge. I wouldn't want to do that because of the man eating sheep over there, but they were better than the Cyclops. I motioned to Percy and Clarisse and they followed me. Polyphemus roared and started after us. Grover got out Annabeth's knife and began cutting the ropes while the three of us ran off the bridge. Clarisse had just leapt across when the last rope snapped and Polyphemus fell into the chasm. He managed to grab onto the edge, though. He pulled himself up with ease.

"Failed!" he said, gleefully. "Nobody failed." He swatted me aside to get to my brother. I gasped as my back hit a boulder. I could feel the ridges in the rock rip through my skin, leaving deep lacerations. I screamed as pain flared through my entire body. Percy did not like that. I could feel the anger bubbling in him through our twin bond. He jumped up and, with amazing strength, knocked Polyphemus to the ground in a matter of seconds. He looked Polyphemus in the eyes...er, I mean eye, and a flash of regret shone in his eyes. I tried to tell my brother not to listen to him, but no sound came out. This was a son of Poseidon after all, my half-brother. But, he hadn't hesitated at all to injure me. Instantaneously, the regret flew from my mind to be replaced with anger. This Cyclops was playing us all. He agreed to let Percy grab the Fleece, but when Percy turned around, Polyphemus began to attack him.

Suddenly, a rock the size of a basket ball hit Polyphemus in the head. "Bad Polyphemus. Not all Cyclopes as nice as we look." It was Tyson, my baby brother was alive! Joy spread through my entire being. Tyson gave us the short version of how he got here. Apparently, Rainbow, the hippocampus Tyson had been riding, had followed us here. The poor thing had just wanted Tyson to play with him. When he saw Tyson sinking through the wreckage, Rainbow rescued him and they had come here.

"Tyson, thank the gods. Annabeth and Nina are hurt." Why did Annabeth come before me? Hey, that sounds like he's thanking the gods we're hurt.

Tyson agreed with my way of thinking. "You thank the gods they are hurt?"

"No! Tyson, the Fleece. Can you get it for me?"

"Which one?" Tyson asked looking at the hundreds of sheep.

"In the tree! The gold one!

"Oh. Pretty. Yes." Tyson carefully walked in between the sheep and grabbed the Fleece. They nuzzled up against him. I guess because he's a cyclops, he smells like their master. Tyson threw the Fleece to Percy who caught it with a grunt. It must be heavier than it looks. Then again, it is solid gold. Percy wrapped it around Annabeth and instantly, she looked better. She woke up and Percy helped her stand. She was healing fast. Tyson waded through the sheep over to me and helped me stand up. I fell back to the ground unable to support myself as soon as he let go. The pain in my back was too much. Tyson picked me up, careful not to touch any of my open wounds. I wrapped my arms around his neck and squeezed my eyes shut. I was trying to focus on anything but the pain.

We all ran to the lifeboat. Percy used his Mage magic to make the boat shoot out to the Queen Anne's Revenge. We all got in. Polyphemus began throwing boulders at us. One sailed over my head and went straight through the ship. We were beginning to sink. Even if we made it off, Annabeth, Grover, and Clarisse would be killed because the force at which the ship is sinking would cause them to be pulled under too. They would drown down there.

Out of nowhere, multi colored heads popped out of the surface. I pointed them out to Tyson who pointed them out to Percy. They were hippocampi. Rainbow was at the lead. Everyone jumped off the boat and onto a hippocampus. As soon as the water touched my back, it began to heal my wounds. Tyson and I sat on Rainbow together. Percy and Annabeth were on another, Annabeth with the FLeece still wrapped around her. Grover and Clarisse each had their own hippocampi.

The hippocampi brought us to Miami Beach. My back was still badly injured. The sea water had stopped healing it. There were pieces of rock in my back and the water seemed to realize that by healing me it was just doing more damage. I was in so much pain. Clarisse and everyone else were depressed. We had no money. Suddenly, Tyson pulled money from his bag. He had salvaged it from the wreckage of the CSS Birmingham. It was enough to get one person home. We decided to send Clarisse with the Fleece. It was her quest after all. I especially insisted after hearing Ares threaten her. I didn't tell anyone I overheard that of course.

"Come on," said Percy. "Let's find another way home." He scooped me up off the bench and turned. There was a sword pointed in between my eyes. I whimpered and Percy tried to back up only to be blocked by one of the bear twins. The twins herded us onto the Princess Andromeda.

"And so, the Fleece. Where is it?" Luke asked. He looked us all over. He prodded Percy's shirt and Grover's jeans with the tip of his sword.

"Hey!" Grover bleated. "That's real goat fur under there."

"Sorry old friend. Just give me the Fleece and I'll leave you to return to your, ah, little nature quest."

"Blaa-ha-ha! Some old friend!"

"Maybe you didn't hear me. Where-is-the-Fleece?" Luke's voice was dangerously calm. He made a hand motion and the bear that wasn't holding Grover and Annabeth ripped me away from my brother. His claws carved three new gashes into my back. I screamed again.

"Nina!" I heard my brother shout. I couldn't see, I was blinded by the pain. Slowly, color returned. "Not here," my brother continued as he swam back into focus. "We sent it on ahead of us. You messed up."

Luke glared at him. "You're lying. You couldn't have..." He seemed to realise something. "Clarisse?" Percy nodded, smirking.

"You trusted...you gave..."

"Yeah."

"Agrius!" The bear man holding me looked at Luke. I guess he's Agrius.

He flinched. "Y-yes?"

"Get below and prepare my steed. Bring it to the deck. I need to fly to the Miami Airport, fast!" Agrius nodded and began lumbering off with me still in his grasp. "Oh, and while you're at it," Agrius turned and I saw Luke's smirk. "Feed the girl to the Drakon."

"No!" Percy, Grover, Tyson, and Annabeth shouted. Percy and Tyson tried to run forward, but Oreius somehow managed to stop them. i struggled against Agrius' grip. I did not want to become Drakon food.

He stopped in the stables first. There were two pegasi. A pure silver mare and a completely black stallion. They began whining as soon as they saw me. When Agrius opened the stall with the black pegasus, it kicked him in the head. He was effectively knocked out and I crawled from his loose grip. _My Lady, please rescue my sister as well. _I nodded and used the pegasus to support myself. He slowly led me to the silver ones stall. I unlocked the door and she trotted out.

_My name is Silvermist, My Lady. That is Blackjack, my twin. Thank you for saving me._

I reached out a hand and stroked her. She neighed and rubbed her head against my hand. I felt my magic spark as I bonded to her. I had found a third familiar. This time, I could tell the bond was more powerful. Maybe it was because she was a pegasi. _I will always be there for you, my familiar._

She whinnied and helped her brother support me as I stumbled from the room. She took extra care to stomp on Agrius' head as we exited. We made our way back to the deck where my brothers, friend, and Annabeth were being held.

We arrived on deck to see an I.M. between here and the camp. The whole camp was watching Luke and Percy. Luke was oblivious to the whole thing. "Ha! You know he would never do that. The old fool wouldn't have the guts!" laughed Luke.

"You call it guts? Betraying your friends? Endangering the whole camp?"

"You don't understand the half of it. I was going to let you take the Fleece...once I was done with it."

Percy hesitated. Luke had been on the run with Thalia. He wouldn't want her dead. "You were going to heal Kronos."

"Yes! The Fleece's magic would have sped his mending process by tenfold. But you haven't stopped us, Percy. You've only slowed us down a little."

"And so you poisoned the tree, you betrayed Thalia, you set us up-all to help Kronos destroy the gods."

Luke growled. "You know that! Why do you keep asking me?"

"Because I want everyone in the audience to hear it."

"Audience, what audience?" Luke flipped around to see the Iris Message.

"Well," said Dionysus. "Some unplanned dinner entertainment." Tantalus began an argument that the Iris Message could be a trick, but Dionysus banished him back to the Underworld. The whole camp cheered as he said Chiron was the Activities Director again. I saw the faintest hint of a smile on his face. The old man really does care. Luke slashed his sword through the mist image. He glared at all of us. My brother had picked me up again.

You'll never leave this ship alive," he growled to us. Percy passed me over to Tyson and pulled out Riptide. Luke pulled out Backbiter. That sword disgusted me. It was a mix of both Celestial Bronze, like the Greek weapons are made from, and mortal steel. Those metals did not belong together.

Luke almost killed my brother on the first try. He just grazed Percy's ribcage. I was nervous. Luke had a sword and shield. Percy just had a sword. Luke had six years of learning how to fight. Percy only had one summer. I was praying to every god I could think of. Even Apollo and Ares. They fought for a little more before Percy rolled behind a deck chair. He had a gash on his knee. He tried to stand, but the leg wouldn't take his weight. Silvermist and Blackjack were standing on either side of Tyson and me. Both pegasi were stomping their feet, nervously.

Luke then told Oreius he could eat his dinner. Oreius lifted Annabeth and Grover up to his mouth. That's when all Hades broke loose. A red feathered arrow came out and shot Oreius in the forehead. Blackjack kicked Oreius and the bear twin dissolved.A dozen centaurs charged onto the deck. They all had bright green t-shirts that said Party Ponies: South Florida Chapter in bright orange letters. At the lead was chiron. He just had a plain, blue t-shirt on. The centaurs' weapons varied from bows and arrows to paintball guns. Sweet! They all had different face paint on and one was wearing googly eye glasses. I like these guys.

They attacked the monsters. They let loose with their paintball guns. A wave of blue and yellow splattered across Luke's warriors. An arrow with a boxing glove attached to the end of it smacked Luke in the face and sent him flying into the swimming pool. I really like these guys. "Withdraw, brethren!" shouted Chiron. Chiron pulled me from Tyson's arms and onto his back. I wrapped my arms around his torso and held on. I do not want to fall off at the speed he was going. I will never ever think of Chiron as old again.

When we finally stopped, we were at a trailer park near a lake. Ever notice how tornados always seem to land in or near trailer parks. Stay focused, Brain. Percy, Annabeth, and Grover joined us. "Nina, child, what happened to your back."

"Oh, well first, Polyphemus through me into a rock. That's what most of the gashes are from. Then, Agrius cut into my back with his claws."

Chiron handed me some ambrosia. I popped it into my mouth. Yummy! Peanut butter fudge. "That will help with the scratches because of the rock, though there will be some slight scarring. The gashes you received from Agrius will need to be washed and bandaged. There is nothing we can do for them. There is a poison in their claws that keeps the food of the gods from healing any wound received by them." I nodded and Annabeth helped me rise. She brought me into one of the trailers where she washed the three gashes and then let me look at them in a mirror. They were long and a few inches thick. They would leave hideous scars.

"Do you know how long it will take for them to heal?" I asked Annabeth, quietly, as she began to dress the wounds. I flinched when she put rubbing alcohol on the three cuts.

"From what I've read in the legend, three months. I'm sorry, Christina. It'll be really painful, but you're strong."

I smiled at the girl and she helped me stand up. She brought me back outside in time to see Tyson nail a centaur with a paintball, splashing blue all over its chest. "Awesome," came the centaurs voice. Tyson waved and I waved back. Annabeth led me back over to Percy, Grover, and Chiron. Chiron smiled down at me and helped me onto his back. Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and Tyson all got on another centaur' back. As Chiron started running, I couldn't help but wonder where my pegasus had ended up. Oh well, she'll turn up along with Blackjack. She knows where I am.

When we got back, we arrived just in time to see Clarisse drape the Golden Fleece over Thalia's Pine. It worked. Instantaneously, the tree turned dark green as did all of the grass around it. I looked out in the distance, everything about camp looked even more beautiful. This was my home, my true home. Most people think of Hogwarts as their home, but not me. Camp is my home, camp is my life. Percy helped me down off Chiron's back and Lav and Vati rushed up to hug me. I winced slightly as the hit a gash.

"You're hurt," Lavender scolded me. "Chiron what happened to her?"

"Why don't you ask me what happened to me?" I asked, slightly confused.

"Because," Vati drawled in the perfect imitation of Draco Malfoy, "you will say it so it just seems like a little scratch. Chiron will tell us how bad the injury really is." I pouted at my friends and they laughed.

"Her back was cut up pretty badly by Agrius one of the bear twins." Lav gasped, placing her hands over her mouth and Vati reached out and grabbed my hand. "It will take around three months to heal because ambrosia and nectar don't work on wounds given by the twin bears. Please watch out for her while you two are in school." My friends nodded their heads then helped me walk to the Poseidon cabin with Percy and Tyson where I filled them in on everything that had happened during the quest.

Grover was given a two-month furlough and a new set of reed pipes for clearing the way for future searchers. I was proud of him and glad that he would be able to spend the rest of the summer with us. The only problem was he insisted playing YMCA for the strawberries. They went crazy for it. It looked like they were dancing. I, however, did not like the music. On a lighter note, Percy was not expelled from Meriwether Prep for blowing up the gymnasium. Something he failed to mention.

Tyson had a dream from our dad. He was asked to go to the Cyclopes' forges. I was happy for him, he was starting his training to be the immortal master. Of course I held my tongue about that part. Dad told me no one could know about it. His own wife and immortal son didn't know about it. I would miss Tyson, but he promised to I.M. me. He hugged me goodbye, very carefully, and then Percy before walking into the sea. I sighed and Percy helped me walk back to our cabin.

That night, I had a dream about the creepy man that had appeared in my dreams last summer.

_The man was sitting in the prison cell still. He looked at the newspaper in his hand. It was a picture of the Weasley family. Next to him sat a letter. It was signed from Hermes. Weird! The man drew a lazy circle around Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. 'I will get you Pettigrew. You won't hurt my godson, and I definitely won't let you hurt the daughter of Poseidon. She is, after all, my family." I gulped, who was this man? The man smirked when he heard a door open. A black robed creature appeared in front of the cell with a tray of food. When it unlocked the small area of the door that would open to allow food in, the man transformed into a dog and snuck past the creature. The man turned dog ran down the hallway and down a long flight of stairs with doors leading out of the stairwell everywhere. The dog burst through a door and stuck its head in the air, enjoying the clean air. The dog jumped into the stormy sea and swam to shore. When he got there, he shook off and changed back into a man._

_It was daylight now. The man shifted into a dog again and ran into a town. He grabbed a newspaper from a trash bin and ran back to the woods. He looked at the front page. I glance over his shoulder to see it. The headline read SIRIUS BLACK, MASS MURDER, HAS ESCAPED FROM AZKABAN. BAM!_

I woke with a start to hear Grover at the door. Percy pulled it open and Grover walked in. "Percy, Nina! Annabeth...on the hill...she..."

The look in his eyes told us he was worried. Percy lifted me up and ran behind Grover to Thalia's Pine. There was already a crowd of people there. Grover helped clear a path so we could get through. I still couldn't walk long distances. There was a girl in armor leaning over a black haired girl. Chiron was standing over them both. I gestured for Percy to put me down. He didn't let go until I was holding the tree. I used it to keep my balance while I gingerly lowered myself to the ground. As I was leaning over the dark haired girl, Chiron began to speak. "Curse the titan lord. He's tricked us again, given himself another chance to control the prophecy."

"What do you mean?" Percy asked.

"The Fleece. The Fleece has worked its magic too well. It healed the tree. And poison was not the only thing it purged."

I looked up at him. "You don't mean..." I trailed off as I looked back down. I gently brushed the girl's spiky hair away from her face. Annabeth had tears streaming down her face. I couldn't blame her. This was the girl who took care of her when she was little. I looked down at the girl again. She had freckles across her nose and her skin was pale. She had hair that was a deep black you just couldn't get from hair dye. The girls cloths were a mix between punk and goth. Her leather jacket had buttons from bands like Green Day and Three Days Grace. I love those bands. Focus, Jackson. There was only one person she could be, but that was impossible. I looked to see Annabeth sobbing. Chiron's words rang in my head '_And poison was not the only thing it purged.' _It had to be her.

"It's true," Grover whispered, though everyone heard it as it was dead silent. "I can't believe..." I nodded, lifting her head and placing it in my lap. Everyone seemed scared. I knew I should be scared, but I couldn't help but feel safer with this girl around. She had always been there last summer for me to talk to. Besides, it wasn't like she was evil. Luke may think she is, but she would have that aura around her. All evil people have one. The girl took a shaky breath. Her eyes shot open, electric blue. This was definitely her.

"Who-"

"I'm Nina. You're safe now."

"Strangest dream..."

"It's okay."

"Dying...Hang on I know your voice."

"You were dying but now you're safe. You kno my voice because I came out here last summer when I couldn't sleep. I would talk to you, you are my cousin after all."

"I am Thalia. Daughter of Zeus."


	36. Chapter 35: Sirius Black

**I'm sorry it's so short, but I needed this part and didn't know what else I could put in. Thank you Kiyora-Hatake for your review. Neville's mom is her just in her Roman form. Snape is a descendent of Hades. **

Chapter Thirty Five: The Son of Hermes

It was getting towards the end of August. Thalia had carried me out to the beach so we could talk together without being interrupted. Thalia was really cool. She was the perfect mix between a sister and a best friend. She was a really close friend. We started talking about different ways to behead a drakon, when there was a thump behind us. We both flipped around. Thalia pulled out her spear and made her shield Aegis appear from her silver bracelet and I pulled out my bow and quiver from Artemis. We rolled our eyes and put them away when we saw Lav and Vati running towards us. "Sorry to interrupt your cousinly bonding, but the Daily Prophet just got here!" said Vati.

"There's been an escape from Azkaban! Sirius Black, he's a mass murderer!" I gasped and grabbed the Prophet from Vati's hands. Thalia looked at us, confused. She knew the basics of the wizarding world because of Vati, Lav, and me. Everyone here at camp did. She just didn't know everything. Lavender explained about it. I looked at the picture. It was the man from the demigod dreams I've been having.

"Guys, I think this guy is a demigod."

"What do you mean?" asked Thalia.

"I've been having dreams about him. In the dreams, he says he needs to protect the daughter of Poseidon. He said we were family."

"We need to go to Chiron," Parvati said. We all nodded and Thalia picked me up off the ground.

"Ugh, Fish Face, you think Chiron will let you borrow his wheelchair?"

"Shut up, Airhead," I grumbled.

We ran, well I was carried, up to the Archery Range where Chiron was instructing some children of Hermes. "Chiron!" I shouted. "We need you."

"Has your back gotten worse?" he asked getting very freaked out.

"No, there's been a breakout from Azkaban. A mass murderer by the name of Sirius Black. Is he a demigod."

"Yes. Sirius is the son of Hermes I told you about a few years back. He was framed for those murders. I was there that day. A man named Peter Pettigrew killed those people. He then cut off his finger and changed into a rat. I'm still wondering about that part. The ministry arrived and took Sirius straight to Azkaban without a trial. When I tried to explain to the ministry, they just told me to go away."

"Our brother was thrown in prison without a trial?" ground out Connor Stoll. His older brother Travis looked just about ready to bash some heads together. Chiron nodded, sadly. "Hermes cabin, we're storming Britain. Which way to the ministry?"

"You can't storm the ministry," Chiron sighed. "But at least he's not in that place anymore."


	37. Chapter 36: Werewolves and Dementors

**Here's another long chapter. It has Moony in it. It also explains how Nina will get around the castle for the next month and a half. I realized I forgot to use the unicorn horn. I don't know when I will use it, but it may be in Last Olympian. Enjoy.**

Chapter Thirty Six: Werewolves and Dementors

All too soon, it was September 1st. Lav, Vati, and I spent all day saying our goodbyes. Thalia and Percy were helping us get to platform 9 3/4. Thalia was a Lightning Mage and would be taking Vati and Padma. Percy and I would be taking Lavender since I couldn't do both of us by myself because of my back. I rode on Chiron's back up to the top of Half-Blood Hill where we met the others. My brother took me into his arms and Lav put a hand on his shoulder. Vati, Thalia, and Padma were all holding hands. We sure did look weird. With a flash of lightning and a covering of mist, we were all gone. When we arrived at the landing point, Percy put me onto my feet and slung one of my arms over his shoulder.

When we got into the station, I saw Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys. They waved and walked over to us. "Hey, Nina, Lavender, Parvati, Padma," said Harry. "WHo are those people?"

"This is my twin brother Percy and my cousin Thalia," I introduced them. They nodded when I said their name. "Perce, Thals, this is Ron, Hermione, Harry, Fred, George, Ginny, Percy, Mr. Weasley, and Mrs. Weasley." They raised their hand or waved when I called their name.

"Oh, my dear, you need to eat some more you look so skinny. You're paler than I remember too. Are you alright, dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked me.

"I'm okay," I told her.

Thalia scoffed, "Nina you can hardly walk. We're supporting most of your weight right now."

I pouted at her. "I had an incident over the summer, Mrs. Weasley. I scraped up my back pretty bad and a, erm, chemical, yeah, a chemical got in it that prevents magic from healing it." I lied a little about the chemical part, but I couldn't just say I got in a fight with someone from a myth who had poison claws and that said poison prevents magic from helping me heal.

"Oh, be careful, dear. Fred, George, why don't you two help get her on the train."

"Sure thing, mother dearest," said Fred. He grabbed my left arm from my brother and wrapped an arm around my waist. George took the other side from Thalia.

"A little higher, George, your arm is on a gash.

He quickly moved his arm up and I sighed in relief. My brother kissed my forehead and Thalia hugged me carefully after maneuvering around the twins. "Take care of my sister, Lav, Vati, Padma. See you guys around," my brother waved.

"See you later, Fish Face, Barbies 1, 2, and 3," came my older cousins lovely voice. Everyone waved to them as they left the platform. I said goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley before Gred and Feorge helped me onto the train. I pointed them to an emptier compartment with a man that seemed to be in his early thirties. Something seemed off about him and I wanted to find out what it was. Lav and Vati sat between me and the man. They sensed that something was wrong with him too and incase he tried to attack, they wanted to make sure I wouldn't get hurt. Padma left to go see her Ravenclaw friends, Ginny left to see some of her friends, and Fred and George left to go find Lee. Ron, Hermione, and Harry were the only ones to stay with us.

Lavender helped me position myself so I could see everyone, including the man. "Hermione," I asked.

"Hmm?"

"Could you let the cat out? I would like to see him."

"I would," here she threw a glare at Ron, "but Ronald, here, thinks that poor Crookshanks is out to eat Scabbers." I could barely suppress my growl at the mention of the rat who got my cousin's son locked in jail. Wow, Sirius Black is Thalia's nephew. She'll get a kick out of that one.

"He'll stay in my lap, he won't harm your rat, Ron," he just grumbled and Hermione happily took Crookshanks out of his basket.

"Isn't he gorgeous!" she exclaimed.

"Aw, I love his face," Lavender giggled. "Do you guys think my mom would let me get a cat?"

"Yeah, I think she would. Silena would love you guys having a family pet.," I laughed.

"Who's Silena?" asked Harry.

"My half-sister," Lavender replied. She started to scratch Crookshanks behind the ears. He began to pur. I let my Mage senses go out. My magic encased the man. I sensed his magic.

I looked over at Lav and Vati. "_He's a werewolf," _I hissed to them. They gasped slightly.

"_How can you be sure? I mean I sense something wrong with him and all, but how do you know he's a werewolf?" _asked Parvati.

"_I sense the venom in his magic. Should we tell him we know?"_

"_Yes, but not here. Hermione, Harry, and Ron shouldn't know. We need to find out just enough to see if he wants to attack us. We should tell him we're demigods too. You know, just in case he doesn't already know," _Lavender said. We nodded our agreement. Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked at us strangely.

"What language was that?" asked Hermione.

"Ancient Greek," was Vati's short reply.

"Who do you think he is?" asked Ron.

"Professor R.J. Lupin," whispered Hermione.

"How do you know that?" Ron whispered back.

"It's on his case," said Lavender, pointing at the case on the luggage rack above the man's head.

"Wonder what he teaches?"

"That's obvious. There's only one vacancy, isn't there? Defense Against the Dark Arts," Hermione exclaimed.

"Well, I hope he's up to it," I grumbled. "It was rather boring when the teacher didn't know what he was doing." Everyone nodded their agreement.

"Erm, guys," Harry murmured. We all turned to him. "I need to tell you something about Sirius Black." Lavender, Parvati, and I tried not to start laughing as he told us about Sirius Black being after him. Sirius was trying to protect him, not kill him.

When he was done, Hermione became hysterical. Get a grip girl, that will just freak Harry out even more. "Sirius Black escaped Azkaban to come after you? Oh, Harry...you'll have to be really, really careful. Don't go looking for trouble, Harry-"

"I don't go looking for trouble," Harry grumbled. "Trouble usually finds me." Lies, he went after the stone. It didn't come to him. He's the one who went on the flying car. No one forced him into it. He went to the Chamber of Secrets. It didn't come to him.

"How thick would Harry have to be, to go looking for a nutter who wants to kill him?" asked Ron shakily. "No one knows how he got out of Azkaban." I do, he turned into a dog and squeezed out from in between the bars. "No one's ever done it before. And he was a top-security prisoner too." Hermione began to have another freak attack about the whole thing. I rolled my eyes and went back to scratching Crookshanks. He kept purring.

They moved onto Hogsmeade. Lav, Vati, and Padma had used Skittles to send the forms out to their mortal fathers. My mother never would have signed it, so I sent it out to my father. He signed it for me and sent me back a sea shell necklace that I wear everyday along with the one Tyson gave me for Christmas last year. Harry's guardians hadn't signed his form. Like the professors would have let him go anyway. Everyone of them except Severus (he lets demigods call him by his first name when we're not in public because technically, we are related) believes Sirius is out to kill Harry. As Ron started to complain about Harry not going, Hermione started to bad mouth Sirius. I bit my tongue to keep from snapping at her. I hate when people talk bad about my family. It annoys me to no end.

Soon enough, Malfoy and his cronies arrived. "Well, look who it is. Potty and the Weasel." Crabbe and Goyle snorted. Ron jumped up, knocking Crookshanks empty basket to the floor. The werewolf in a professor's clothing coughed. "Who's that?"

"New teacher," I shrugged as Lavender helped me slide over a little so I could see the door. "What were you saying Malfoy?"

He glared at me. Even he wasn't muto enough to pick a fight under a professor's nose. He left. I slid carefully back over and looked out towards the window. The rain was getting harder. The train jerked to a stop. I bounced slightly in my seat and I hissed in pain as my back hit the seat back really hard. Great, the wounds were just starting to close too. Suddenly, all the lamps went out and we were plunged into total darkness.

"What's going on?" asked Ron.

"Ouch!" squealed Hermione. "Ron, that was my foot!"

There was a squeaking sound and I saw a dim, black outline of Vati, clearing a patch of moisture off the glass of the window. She peered out. "There's something moving out there, I think people are coming on board..."

The compartment door opened and someone fell on top of me. I whimpered as they pushed me back against a metal bar and it dug into my back. "Sorry-d'you know what's going on?-Ouch-sorry-"

"Hullo, Ginny," Harry said. I felt the body get lifted off of me.

"Harry? Is that you? What's happening?"

"No idea-sit down-" I heard a flop as Ginny sat down. "Ginny, that was me."

"Whoops, sorry, Harry. Can't see in the dark." I didn't think that Ginny sounded sorry at all. The door slammed open again.

"Hey, guys. Any of you know what's going on?" It was Neville.

"No, Nev. Come sit down." I shifted over just in time for Neville to sit next to me and not on me. I leaned onto Lavender to help support my back. Everyone started talking.

"Quiet," hissed a new voice. I guess that's the werewolf. He must have finally woken up. He's probably so tired because the full moon was two days ago. There was a crackling noise and a shimmery light appeared. The werewolf was holding a handful of flames. They were small and grey. Kind of like our moods. That's probably the same type of fire they use for the campfire. "Stay where you are." I gulped, was this his doing? Did he find out we're demigods? Is he going to eat us? He slowly rose to his feet. Lav, Vati, and I huddled up together. Neville seemed slightly afraid too. I wonder why.

The door slid slowly open. Did he invite more of his werewolf friends. Vati was clutching her dove charm, ready to expand it into a sword at the last second. Standing in the doorway, was a hooded, cloaked figure. It seemed to float into the room, bringing with it freezing cold and a sense of despair. I shivered, memories flashed through my mind. Every time Sally looked at me with an angry glare, every time she yelled at me, every time Gabe threatened me, and everytime he hit me. All of these memories floated through my mind at high speed. The cold felt like it was eating away at me. I sank to the floor as my screams of pain filled my head. The last memory was of Agrius holding me hostage as Oreius threatened to kill Annabeth and Grover. Luke had my brother at sword point. I slipped from the seat to the floor. The thing came closer to me. Slowly, it began slipping its hood off. I could now see its face. Where eyes should have been, skin stretched over empty sockets. Instead of a nose, there were two slits in the center of its face. The mouth is what scared me the most. It was a gaping hole. That was it. Just a gaping hole of grey tissue slightly lighter than the skin around the mouth. I could feel it sucking away my happiness. All of my happy memories seemed to disappear. "Expecto Patronum!" I heard.

A silvery light burst forth from the werewolf's wand. The creature quickly covered its face and fled from the room. The light was in the shape of a wolf. It came over and nuzzled me before disappearing back into the werewolf's wand. I looked over to see Harry unconscious on the floor next to me. Lavender and Parvati carefully helped me back into my seat. "Here, eat this." The werewolf was shoving something in my face. I was whimpering, my back hurt so much. I trusted him, he just saved my life and his magic seemed trustworthy as well. I wanted to reach out and grab it, but I couldn't it hurt too much to move. My wounds felt like they were on fire. "I haven't poisoned it, if that's what you're thinking." His voice lowered to a whisper, "Your friends told me that you know I'm a werewolf. I know you're demigods. I swear on the Styx, it won't hurt you."

Vati gasped from where she was standing next to me. "Professor, she can't move. She has a really bad back injury from Agrius, you know the bear twin." Lupin nodded. "Well, when she fell to the ground, she hit her back against the seat. She probably can't lift her arm without making it hurt way worse." I weakly nodded my head. Lav took it from Professor Lupin and fed it to me. I felt so weak and helpless. There was a monster in here and I couldn't do anything to save my friends.

"Thanks," I whispered. The pain in my back wasn't lessening at all, but my migraine was going away. Professor Lupin smiled at me before turning to Harry. He gave Harry a huge trunk of what I realized was chocolate. Wow, a nice werewolf. That's a new one. After he gave everyone else chocolate, he strode out of the compartment to talk to the driver. Before he left, he told us those were the dementors of Azkaban. I gulped, poor Sirius. He didn't deserve that.

When Professor Lupin came back, he told us we'd be at Hogwarts in ten minutes. "Are you alright, Harry, Nina?" Harry and I both nodded.

"Wait, how did you know my name?"

"Lavender told me," he said simply. I nodded and leaned back against said girl. Very soon, the train stopped in front of the Hogsmeade station.

When we got into the Great Hall, I heard, "Potter, Jackson, Granger." The three of us turned to see Professor McGonagall. "I want to see the three of you." I groaned. The pain in my back hadn't gone down at all and now she expects me to walk to her office? Great, just great.

Lav and Vati helped me walk up to her, but she snapped at them to get into the Great Hall. I fell sideways as soon as they let go. Luckily, they had made sure I was only a few inches away from the wall. "Stand up straight, Miss Jackson," she barked at me. I struggled to get up, but couldn't do it. "What on earth is wrong with you?"

"I have a severe back injury. It hit part of my nervous system, so now I can't walk or stand up straight. It should heal in about a month, though. Then, I'll be able to walk perfectly again. That's why Lavender and Parvati were helping me."

"Oh, you poor thing. Why didn't you tell me. We'll have Madam Pomfrey fix you right up."

"No!" I nearly shouted. "I mean, magic just makes it take longer to heal, when I got the gashes, a chemical got in them that reacts badly with magic. It should finish healing in about a month and a half."

"Well then, dear, we'll have to teach you a spell so you can float around the castle."

"You're joking!" I looked at McGonagall, ready for her to say 'Ha! Got you!' It didn't come. She was smirking as if the thought of me floating around the castle amused her.

Just as Hermione and Harry got there, she pointed her wand at me and said, "Mobilicorpus!" I floated up into the air a few inches. It felt so cool to just float there. "Follow me," said McGonagall, still smirking slightly. Harry was staring at me, confused at why I was floating. Hermione rolled her eyes, annoyed by my antics, until she realized Professor McGonagall was the one to cast the spell. Professor McGonagall pointed her wand in front of he and I floated in that direction at the brisk pace the others were walking at. This was so much fun! When we reached Professor McGonagall's office, she flicked her wand. I stopped moving. Aw. She opened the door then floated me in. Yay! She gently set me down in a soft chair.

Madam Pomfrey soon came bustling in. "Oh, it's you two, is it?" I grinned and waved at Madam Pomfrey. I spent far too much time in the Hospital Wing for her liking. I was in there more than Harry! "I suppose you two have been doing something dangerous again?"

"Yes," I said.

At the same time, McGonagall said, "It was a dementor, Poppy." She didn't seem to approve of them being around students.

Madam Pomfrey didn't seem to hear me say yes. "Setting dementors around a school." She pushed back Harry's hair and felt his forehead. "They won't be the last ones to collapse. Yes, he's all clammy. Terrible things, they are, and the effect they have on people who are already delicate-"

I'm not delicate!" Harry and I grumbled crossly.

"Of course you aren't dears." She handed us both chocolate. Harry told her we both already had chocolate and that Professor Lupin gave it to us. She seemed pleased by this.

"Wait, you're supposed to eat chocolate after you encounter a dementor? I thought Professor Lupin was just a chocoholic." Both adults stared at me and Harry started laughing.

Madam Pomfrey shook her head and pressed the back of her hand to my forehead. "Oh, dear, are you feeling alright? You're burning up." McGonagall explained to her about the injury I had received. Madam Pomfrey tutted at me disapprovingly before leaving. McGonagall floated me outside and made Harry walk out behind me. She was talking to Hermione for a while. When she walked back out with Hermione, she walked with us downstairs. When we got to the Great Hall, she floated me over to the Gryffindor table and when Lavender grabbed my arm, she gently put me down. Lav and Vati helped me sit down. I informed them of what happened in McGonagall's office and of the floating charm. They agreed to float me around the castle.


	38. Chapter 37: Sight and Percy

**Sorry for the delay guys. I didn't have any time to update these past couple days. I worked really hard on this chapter so I hope you like it. Thank you to QuillMist9674 for your review. It was really cool that you think so highly of this. **

Talking to equestrian animals

**Greek**

Chapter Thirty Seven: Sight and Percy

The next morning, Lavender made me float down to the Great Hall. Lav, Vati, and I giggled the whole way. When we got down there, Malfoy was doing an impression of Harry passing out. I rolled my eyes at his immaturity. Pansy Parkinson spotted me. "Hey, Jackson! Jackson! The dementors are coming, Jackson! Woooooooo!" I rolled my eyes and Parvati started cursing in Indian and Ancient Greek under her breath.

When we sat down, Fred and George passed us our schedules. We told them about Malfoy and Parkinson. They growled. "That little git," growled George. ""He wasn't so cocky last night when the dementors were down our end of the train. Came running into our compartment, didn't he, Fred?"

"Nearly wet himself," Fred agreed with a glare at Malfoy. I laughed and started to eat my waffle. Skittles flew in and landed on the table next to my dish.

_How are you feeling, Nina? _she asked as she grabbed a strawberry.

_Better, I still can't walk._

_How are you going to get around?_

_McGonagall showed me a charm that makes you float. Lav and Vati agreed to float me around the castle._

_That's nice of them._

Ron and Hermione started up a conversation about how you can't be in three classes at once. I rolled my eyes. Those two are always fighting. Can't they give it a rest? I looked at my schedule, we had divination first. Fred gave me very clear instructions on how to get there. Parvati floated me down the corridors and I told them when to turn, having memorized Fred's instructions. Lavender climbed up the ladder and held the trap door open for me. Vati then floated me up, following close behind.

Inside the classroom, were a bunch of beanbag chairs and chintz armchairs. Vati set me down in an armchair and she and Lav sat on the two beanbag chairs. I felt so tall. I'm used to being the shortest. I had only reached 5'. Lav and Vati were both 5" taller than me. "Welcome," came a voice from behind me. I wanted to turn around to see who it was, but I didn't want to hurt my back worse. "How nice to see you in the physical world at last. Sit, my children, sit." I wasn't sure what to make of this lady as she came into my view. "Welcome to Divination. My name is Professor Trelawny. You may not have seen me before. I find that descending too often into the hustle and bustle of the main school clouds my inner eye."

Lavender, Parvati, and I were interested in what Professor Trelawney had to say. I had only ever gotten the opinion of one other prophetic-seer, and I now hated that man, I mean god. It was nice to hear a new opinion of the inner eye. "So, you have chosen to study Divination, the most difficult of all magical arts." I'll say, it takes forever to determine what some of my visions mean. "I must warn you from the outset that if you do not have the sight, there is very little I can teach you." Lav and Vati smirked at me. I stuck my tongue out at them. "Books can only take you so far in this field..." I almost laughed at Hermione expression.

"Many witches and wizards, though talented in making loud bangs, smells, and sudden disappearances, are yet unable to penetrate the veiled mysteries of the future. It is a gift to few. You, boy." She pointed at Neville. "Is your grandmother well?"

"I-I think so," Neville stammered.

"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you, dear." Neville gulped. I glanced into the future to see for myself if what Trelawney was saying was true. I saw Neville's gran sick in bed with the flu. Vati and Lav looked at me. I nodded my head. 'In a week she'll come down with the flu,' I mouthed to my friends. They nodded. "We will be covering the basic methods of Divination this year. The first term will be devoted to tea term we shall progress to palmistry. By the way, my dear," Trelawney turned to Vati, "beware a red-haired man." I quickly glanced into the future. A demigod fighting with Luke had cornered Vati in London and was trying to force her to join. She skewered him quickly. I whispered what would happen to her and she relaxed. Everyone except Vati, Lav, and I were glaring at Ron. "In the third term, we shall progress to the crystal ball-if we have finished fire omens, that is. Unfortunately, in February, classes will be interrupted by a nasty flu epidemic. I myself will lose my voice. And around Easter, one of our number shall leave us forever."

She smiled at us all. "I wonder, dear, if you could pass me that large, silver teapot." Lav happily got up and got it. "Thank you, my dear. Incidentally, that thing you have been dreading-it will happen on Friday, the sixteenth of October." Lav trembled and when she sat down, Vati wrapped her in a hug. Lav's worst fear was her younger sister, Belinda(everyone calls her Bunny for some strange reason) being killed by monsters. I didn't want Bunny to die! "Now, I want you all to divide into groups of three or four. Collect a tea cup from the shelf and come to me, and I will fill it. Then, sit down and drink, drink until only the dregs remain.

I smirked and raised my hand. Trelawney called on me. "Professor, is it caffeinated?" Everyone started cracking up. Hey, it's not my fault I can't have caffeine.

"No, it is not."

"Okay, good. I'm not allowed to drink caffeine.

"Oh, swill the dregs around the cup three times with the left hand, then turn your cup upside down on the saucer, wait for the last of the tea to drain away, then give your cup to a partner to read. You will interpret the patterns using pages five and six of unfogging the future. I shall move among you, helping and instructing. Oh and dear-" she grabbed Neville's arms as he began to stand up- "after you've broken your first cup, would you be so kind as to select a blue patterned ones? I'm rather attached to the pink."

As soon as Neville stepped past me with a pink cup, it slipped from his hands. I sent a quick 'Wingardium Leviosa' to keep it from breaking. He smiled his gratitude and Professor Trelawney nodded at me. Lav brought me back a blue one after explaining to Trelawney about my walking situation. We followed the instructions. I passed my cup to Vati, who passed her's to Lav, who passed her's to me. I looked into it.

"Ooh, Lav, there's a falcon in here. You have a very deadly enemy," I laughed.

"No duh, I'm a demigod. Luke is very deadly." We nodded our agreement.

"Oh, Vati, you poor dear. There's a cross here. You'll experience pain and suffering." We laughed again. We didn't need teacups to tell us that.

"Nina, you have a sun. How ironic." I glared at Vati. "You'll have great happiness."

"Not likely," I grumbled. "How can I be happy when I know what my destiny is?" Lav and Vati both reached over and gave me one armed hugs.

We heard Trelawney say Harry had the grim. Stinks for him. Vati gasped. "Nina, I think you have the grim." The whole room became even more silent as Professor Trelawney rushed over to us. She grabbed the teacup from Vati and sank into the chintz armchair that was across from me. She was clutching her heart. She looked at me and Harry sadly.

"Never, have I had a grim in my class. Now, I have two. I never could have foreseen this. I wish this was not so."

"What are you going to tell me next?" I whispered to Lav and Vati.

"That you're going to die because you blew yourself up," Vati whispered back. I held back a snort. Luckily, no one noticed it. Everyone began to whisper about the grim. I rolled my eyes. Professor Trelawney sent us off to our next class.

When we got to Transfiguration, Professor McGonagall asked me how my back was doing. "Same as a lot better than yesterday, but that might be because I hit it against the seat yesterday." She smiled sadly at me and gestured to a seat near the front of the room which Lav floated me too.

"I'll give you, Miss Patil, and Miss Brown a note and let you leave after the rush so you don't get hurt any worse."

"That means a lot, Professor. Thank you."

After a few minutes of class, Professor McGonagall was getting annoyed by all the whispering. She transformed back into her human form from her cat form. "Really, what has gotten into you all today? Not that it matters, but that's the first time my transformation's not got applause from a class." Hermione raised her hand. "Yes, Miss Granger."

"Please, Professor, we've just had our first Divination class, and we were reading the tea leaves, and-"

"Ah, of course. There is no need to say any more, Miss Granger. Tell me, which of you will be dying this year?"

"Nina and me," said Harry, finally.

"Two of you, I see. Then you should know, Potter, Jackson, that Sybil Trelawney has predicted the death of a student each year since she arrived at this school. None of them has died yet. Seeing death omens is her favorite way of greeting a new class. If it were not for the fact that I never speak ill of my colleagues-" Professor McGonagall cut herself off. "Divination is one of the most imprecise branches of magic. I shall not conceal from you that I have very little patience with it. True seers are very rare, and Professor Trelawney-"

Lav raised her hand. "Yes, Miss Brown."

"Nina is a prophetic-seer, right, Nina." Professor McGonagall looked at me funny. I shrugged and nodded my head.

"I still don't believe it," Hermione huffed. "There is no such thing."

I glared at her and closed my eyes, looking into the future. "In five minutes, a pegasus will be at the window." I opened my eyes and everyone stared at the window. Sure enough, five minutes later, a black pegasus flew up to the window. Wait a minute, there's only one pure black pegasus. "Blackjack!" I shouted. Vati jumped up and opened the window. My brother's pegasus stuck his head in the window.

Hey, Nina!

Blackjack, you better have a good reason for being here!

Blackjack snorted and moved so that the person on his back could climb through. A teenager climbed through the window. "Hey, Nina, Vati, Lav. What's up?"

"Percy!" I almost jumped up to hug him. Vati and Lav pulled me back. Percy grinned at me and knelt down next to me. He hugged me carefully.

"Thalia says hey, but didn't want to come. Something about not wanting to interrupt our reunion. Weird, she loves hanging out with you." Lav and Vati started giggling.

"Are you really that oblivious, Perce? Thalia's afraid of heights."

"Really? That's funny cause she's-"

"Yes, Percy. Don't tease her."

"No, I won't."

"May I ask who you are?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Percy Jackson. I'm Nina's twin brother. Sorry, did I interrupt class?"

"No, we were waiting for a pegasus, which did show up, didn't you, Blackjack?" Lav laughed.

Blackjack threw his mane back. He whinnied. "He is so cute," Susan Bones giggled.

"Please, don't feed his ego," I rolled my eyes. Percy snorted. "Wait, why are you here?"

"I can't visit my favorite sister?" Percy asked indignantly. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and pouted.

"Percy, I'm your only sister. Probably the only one you're going to get too."

Percy stuck his tongue out at me. "Chiron found some herb that he thought might help." He pulled a green herb from his sweatshirt pocket. It looked very familiar.

"Percy," I sighed, "that's parsley."

"Don't ask me, the centaur gave it to me!" People stared at him.

"What centaur?" Hermione asked, snobbishly. "Centaur's don't help humans. THey stay away from us." She seemed rather proud of saying that.

"Really? Centaurs in England don't like people? Wow, the ones in America are really social and most will steal your root beer." Everyone stared at him.

"Nina, I thought you said your brother was a muggle. How does he have a pegasus and know about centaurs?" asked Harry.

"Oh, because I'm-"

**No, Percy, wizards don't know Mages still exist! Just say you have a different type of magic.**

**Alright, thanks for the save, little sister.**

I glared at him as he said, "I have a different type of magic than you guys. I really have to go. I have class tomorrow and my mom will kill me if I ditch. He kissed me on the forehead and waved to Lav and VAti. "Ti amo, sorellina, ciao."

"Ti amo troppo, fratellino. I'm older!"

"Yeah, but I'm taller!" was Percy's response as he jumped on Blackjack and flew off.

"Well, I guess you are a prophetic-seer," said McGonagall. I nodded, smiling.

"Your brother is so cute!" squealed Hannah. I grimaced did not need to hear that.

"Back off," Vati snapped. "He's Lavender's. Lav blushed and I started laughing. She had confessed her crush to us and Thalia.

"Shut up! I told you guys not to tell anyone!" We just started laughing harder.


	39. Chapter 38: Parsley and Hippogriffs

**Here's the next chapter. Nina can walk again. Well, a little bit. She needs some support. This is the first care of Magical Creatures class. Yay! I love that class. Enjoy!**

Chapter Thirty Eight: Parsley and Hippogriffs

After Transfiguration, we had lunch. Everyone in the Great Hall was whispering about the strange boy on a pegasus that had shown up outside Professor McGonagall's classroom. The story had somehow gotten so messed up, that people were starting to believe that he was a long lost cousin of McGonagall. How did they get that out of my twin brother?

Lav, Vati, and I rushed to finish eating. When we were done, they rushed me up to Myrtle's bathroom. I waved as I was floated onto a toilet seat. Real classy Vati. Lav transfigured an old quill into a small bowl and Vati poured the parsley into it. I still didn't see how parsley was going to help. Vati, then, crushed up some Ambrosia and put it in the bowl. She mixed it with a stirrer she had brought up from the Great Hall. At the same time, Lav was pouring Nectar into the mix. It looked like a golden paste.

I turned around and they began to take the ace bandage off. Lav rolled the blood stained bandage up and placed it in the sink. She grimaced as she held it. The bandages kept the wound from bleeding too much, but didn't stop it completely. The gashes were finally scabbing over until the train incident yesterday. Lav figures it sent me back about a week. Vati began to spread the paste around my back. It was cool against the warmth of my skin. It felt really nice. When she was done, Lav put new bandages around my back that I summoned from my bracelet. I banished the old bandage.

Lav helped me up. She and Vati each had an arm. "So, feeling any better?" asked Lavender.

I closed my eyes. It was like the pain was slowly seeping away. I almost felt no pain, almost. Every now and then, I would get a flash of pain. My back felt so much better. "You have no idea. Parsley, who would've guessed?" We all laughed. Parvati put the rest of the paste in a canteen. "Remind me to thank Chiron next time we see him."

Lavender giggled as she began to float me down to our next class. I was finally going to have a Care of Magical Creatures class. I was really excited. Chiron had helped us figure out how to open the books. Why did someone think it was a good idea to create a carnivorous book? Only Hagrid would assign us that book.

When we got outside, we noticed all the Slytherin's were heading towards Hagrid's hut as well. Great, more Malfoy. Just perfect. "Why do we always have the dangerous classes with the Slytherins?" asked Vati. Lav shrugged.

"I don't know. Why does Dumbledore think this is a good idea?" I replied.

When we got to Hagrid's hut, I saw the most beautiful sight. They had the front half of an eagle and the back half of a horse. "They're beautiful, Hagrid!" I squealed.

"Thought yeh'd like 'em, Nina. These are Hippogriffs. Beau'iful, aren' they?" Lav and Vati nodded their agreement. The rest of the class didn't seem so sure. Well, I think they're absolutely gorgeous.

Hello, my Lady. Wow, I guess since they're half horse, they can understand me.

What are your names?

Buckbeak.

"So," said Hagrid before the rest could answer, "if yeh wan' ter come a bit nearer-" Harry, Ron, and Hermione approached the fence very cautiously. Lav, Vati, and I went up with no fear. Hey, we've fought tons of monsters. We don't scare very easily anymore. The rest of the class didn't come much nearer. "Now, firs' thing yeh gotta know abou' hippogriffs is, they're proud. Easily offended, hippogriffs are. Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing yeh do. Yeh always wait fer the hippogriff ter make the firs' move. It's polite, see?Yeh walk towards him, and yeh bow, an' yeh wait. If he bows back, yeh're allowed ter touch him. If he doesn' bow, then get away from him sharpish, 'cause those talons hurt. Right-who wants ter go first?" Everyone except me stepped back. Lav was about to float me back when I waved her off. "No one?"

"I'll do it, Hagrid," I grinned eagerly. Lav and Vati rushed forward to help me over the fence. I could hear Malfoy laughing at me. He wouldn't be laughing if he knew how I got so badly injured.

"Thought yeh'd like ter give it a go," roared Hagrid. "Right then- let's see, how yeh get on with Buckbeak." He pulled the hippogriff I had been conversing with earlier forward. The class seemed to hold their breath. Buckbeak didn't give me a chance to bow. As soon as Hagrid had his leather collar off, he was by my side and nuzzling my hand. I smiled and began to stroke the top of his head. If I wasn't a daughter of Poseidon, he wouldn't have been nearly so eager as to greet me. He nipped lightly at my fingers, and I laughed. Hagrid was spluttering and the rest of the class was staring at me in awe. "Well done, Nina! I reckon he might let yeh ride him!"

"Can I?" I asked. My excitement kept growing. Hagrid was about to give me instructions about how to mount him when Buckbeak knelt down for me.

I do not wish for you to hurt yourself any more, My Lady.

Thank you, Buckbeak. You are very kind.

I placed my hands on his back for support and placed one leg over his back. Buckbeak stood up. Hagrid seemed even more shocked. I giggled. I wrapped my arms around Buckbeak's neck and he took off. He flew me a couple times around the paddock.

When we landed, everyone except Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle cheered. "Good work, Nina! Okay, who else wants to have a go?" The rest of the class climbed into the paddock. Hagrid untied the hippogriffs one by one. They all came over to me to say hello. I pet them all before sending them off to the rest of the class. Malfoy took over Buckbeak. Buckbeak was annoyed by him. Apparently, he has very good hearing and heard Malfoy laughing at me earlier. He refused to bow to the Malfoy heir. I laughed quietly at that. I used the fence to lean on as I stumbled over to Neville. He bowed to his hippogriff and the hippogriff bowed back when he figured out that Neville was a friend of mine. Neville cautiously went over to pet him.

"This is very easy," I heard Malfoy say. Uh oh, he's going to insult me soon. Buckbeak won't like that at all. "I knew it must of have been, if Jackson could do it..." Buckbeak still hadn't bowed back to Malfoy. I started to use the fence to pull myself over to him. Thank the gods for the paste, otherwise I would be in a whole lot of pain. I was closing in on Malfoy. "I bet you're not dangerous at all are you? Are you, you great ugly brute?"Buckbeak slashed at Malfoy.

How dare you insult My Lady and myself, you insolent mortal!

I placed the floating charm on myself and floated swiftly over in front of Buckbeak. Not even Hagrid would be able to stop him now. I placed my hand of Buckbeak's beak and began to stroke him. He calmed down a little and Hagrid managed to put his collar on. "Nina, yeh should have let me handle tha'," he grunted as he pulled Buckbeak away. I simply shrugged and floated back towards Lav and Vati.

"What did that idiot say!" demanded Lav. I told them everything.

"He really shouldn't have insulted you," Vati groaned. I nodded my head.

"I'm dying! I'm dying, look at me! It's killed me!" I rolled my eyes. The rest of the class began to panic.

Lavender got a little annoyed. "Malfoy, will you shut up. Nina got hurt 10 times worse than that over the summer and is still feeling the pain. You don't hear her blubbering like a crazed monkey, do you? Nina can hardly walk and she's not screaming! You're not going to die!"

Everyone stared at her and she blushed. People looked at me and I waved. They finally seemed to notice that I was floating, not walking. Hagrid picked up Malfoy and began to run up to the hospital wing. The rest of us began to follow at a walk a few minutes later. The Slytherins were all insulting Hagrid. I noticed that Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis didn't say anything. Wonder why?

"They should fire him straight away!" screeched Pansy Parkinson. Gods, her voice is worse than Annabeth's and Hermione's combined.

"It was Malfoy's fault!" Dean Thomas snapped back.

"He insulted Buckbeak!" added Seamus Finnegan.

The Slytherins went down to their common room, and the rest of us went up to ours. "That was an interesting first day back," Vati grumbled. We nodded our agreement.


	40. Chapter 39: A Boggart and Sirius

**Here's the next chapter. Nina is going to sing another song. It is at the very end. Thank you to my two reviewers. To charmed415, Nina and Apollo will meet up during Christmas break because that's when Titan's Curse will be taking place. To sassiecassie218, Nina and Artemis will also be talking over Christmas break because of Titan's Curse. Enjoy the chapter and don't forget to keep reviewing!**

Chapter Thirty Nine: A Boggart and Sirius

Malfoy didn't show up in classes until Thursday. He was milking that wound so bad. If I had a wound like that, I'd be up and training and hour after receiving it. What a wimp. He walked into Potions late and disrupted the whole class. Sev didn't give him detention because he was pretending to play favorites. If you looked into his eyes, you could see how annoyed he really was. Good thing descendants of Hades were really good at masking their emotions. Malfoy began to make up excuses as to why he couldn't cut his roots or skin his shrivelfig. I could almost hear Sev's patience snap. "I know for a fact, Mr. Malfoy, that you are right handed. Your injury is on your left arm. You do not need Miss Jackson's aid in creating your potion." Malfoy scowled at Sev who winked at me. "She is injured far worse than you are and I don't hear her complaining so be quiet and get to work." I smiled at him. He may pretend to favor the Slytherins, but he would always put me first.

I growled when Malfoy began t goad Harry about Sirius. He told Harry that he should go after Sirius for revenge. Malfoy is such an idiot. Why does he have to be so cruel. "Mr. Malfoy, I must insist you stop distracting Potter from his potion. He has enough trouble as it is." The whole class was in shock by the end of Potions. Thank you, Sevvie.

After class, Hermione disappeared. She's been doing that a lot after classes. I wonder where she's running off to. Wait a minute, how is she getting to all her classes? Most of her classes are at the same time as at least one other. I wonder...

After lunch we had Defense Against the Dark Arts. I wasn't nervous about being taught by a werewolf anymore. If he had wanted to kill Lav, Vati, and me, he would have done it on the train instead of saving my life, I mean soul. When we got to his class, he wasn't there.

Good afternoon," he smiled when he walked in. "Would you please put all your books back in your bags. Today we will be having a practical lesson. You will need only your wands." I hoped this wouldn't be like Lockhart's practical lesson last year. That was a catastrophe. "Right then, if you'd follow me." He left the classroom and we all followed.

On the way, we ran into Peeves. He was shoving gum into a keyhole. I was about to tell him to take it out, when he spotted Professor Lupin. "Loony, Loopy, Lupin," he sang. "Loony, Loopy, Lupin, Loony, Loopy, Lupin-" Instead of getting mad, Professor Lupin smiled.

"I'd take that gum out of the keyhole if I were you, Peeves. Mr. Filch won't be able to get into his brooms."

Peeves blew a rather loud raspberry. "Peeves," I said. Lupin looked at me, so did the rest of the class. "Please take out the gum. Filch always yells at you when you do stuff like this, and his voice really hurts my ears."

"Okay, Nina. Peeves will take the gum out for his little friend."

"Thanks Peeves. Means a lot to me." Peeves stuck his tongue out at me and began to pull the gum out.

"I must say, I am impressed. Peeves doesn't listen to anybody except the Bloody Baron," Professor Lupin said.

"You just have to be nice to him. Helping him with a few of his pranks doesn't hurt either. Nobody's nice to him except maybe five of the students, so he doesn't help anyone. He did say he had a soft spot for three men called Prongs, Padfoot, and Moony, whoever they are."

"Three-fourths of the infamous Marauders," Professor Lupin said as he continued down the hall.

"Who?" asked Dean Thomas.

"The Pranking Kings of Hogwarts back in the 70's. I went to school with them. There was never a boring day with those four around."

We all laughed as Professor Lupin led us into the teachers lounge. Sev was walking out as we walked in. He insulted Neville and Hermione on his way out.

"I was hoping Neville could assist me with the first stage of the operation. I'm sure he will perform it admirably." Sev's lip curled as he left. Professor Lupin rolled his eyes at him and I snorted.

Lupin led us to a wardrobe. It was rattling. I wonder what's in there. "Nothing to worry about." Lupin looked directly at Lav, Vati, and me. "There's a boggart in there." I breathed a sigh of relief. That's not too bad. "Boggart's like dark, enclosed spaces. Wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, the cupboards under sinks-I've even met one that lodged itself in a grandfather clock. This one moved in yesterday afternoon. I asked the headmaster if the staff would leave it to give my third years some practice. So, the first question we must ask ourselves is, what is a boggart?"

Hermione raised her hand. "It's a shape-shifter. It can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most."

"Couldn't have put it better myself," smiled Professor Lupin. Hermione seemed to glow with pride. That girl really needs to get out more. "So, the boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become what each of us most hears. This means that we have a huge advantage over the boggart before we begin. Have you spotted it, Harry?"

"Er-because there are so many of us, it won't know what shape it should be?"

"Precisely. It's always best to have company when dealing with a boggart. He becomes confused. Which should he become, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug. I once saw a boggart make that very mistake- tried to frighten two people at once and turned himself into half a slug. Not remotely frightening. The charm that repels a boggart is simple, yet it requires force of mind. You see, the thing that really finishes a boggart is laughter. What you need to do, is force it to assume a shape that you find amusing. We will practice the charm without wands first. After me please...riddikulus!"

"Riddikulus!" the class said together.

"Perfect. Now, Neville. First things first: what would you say frightens you the most in the whole world?"

Neville murmured something that none of us could hear. "Sorry, Neville, didn't catch that."

Neville took a deep breath. "Professor Snape."

We all started laughing. Even Neville chuckled slightly. "Professor Snape...hmm...Neville, I believe you live with your grandmother?" Neville nodded his head. "I wonder, what sort of clothes does she wear?"

"Well...always the same hat. A tall one with a stuffed vulture on top. And a long dress...green, normally...and sometimes a fox-fur scarf. Oh, and a big, red handbag."

"Right than. Can you picture those cloths very clearly, Neville? Can you see them in your mind?" Neville nodded his head eagerly. "When the boggart bursts out of this wardrobe, Neville, and sees you, it will form Professor Snape. And you will raise your wand and shout 'Riddikulus!" Neville nodded his head again and Lupin opened the door.

Sev stepped out. "Riddikulus!" Neville cried without a moments hesitation. Sev was now wearing exactly what Neville had described. I started laughing with everyone else. I was never going to let him live this one down. The rest of us followed Professor Lupin's instructions and thought of what scared us most. My thoughts flew straight to Agrius. He terrified me more than Ares an Gabe combined. What would make him seem funny? What if I turned him into a guinea pig? Yes, that is funny because of what happened to Percy at Circe's island. Perfect.

"Parvati, forward," laughed Professor Lupin. Snape rounded on her and turned into a dried up hippy mummy. When did she see the Oracle?

"Riddikulus!" the Oracle began to spew green smoke and started choking on it. She collapsed.

"Seamus," called Lupin. A banshee appeared before Seamus. She was about to scream when she lost her voice. It then turned into a rat that chased its tail in a circle. Then, it was a rattlesnake which changed into a bloody eyeball in front of Lavender. She must have seen the cyclops' eye in the attic. I was very disturbing. Dean rushed forward and the eyeball became a severed hand. It flipped over and began to crawl like a crab. Soon it was stuck in a mousetrap. Ron leapt forward and it became a spider. With a wave of his wand, it lost its legs. It began to roll and stopped in front of me.

The boggart shifted into Agrius. I could feel my heart racing. I could hear blood pounding in my ears. I was reliving that day over the summer. His claws had my blood on them. He loped towards me. I raised my wand and he grinned at me. His teeth were stained red from all the blood he had consumed. I took a deep breath, "Riddikulus!" With a crack, Agrius was changed into a guinea pig. I sunk down onto the floor. The guinea pig squealed and ran in front of Harry. Lupin jumped in front of it and it turned into a silvery orb. Neville went in to finish it off. Neville laughed at it and the Boggart disappeared into smoke.

Everyone turned to look at me. Lav and Vati rushed to my side and wrapped me in a hug. I hardly noticed. I was still too wrapped up in memories. "Christina, what was that thing?" I looked up to see Professor Lupin standing over me. I brought my knees up to my chest and rested my head on them.

"His name is Agrius. He a monster from Ancient Greece who I ran into over the summer. He is a half-man and half-bear cannibalistic creature. He is the cause of the wounds on my back. A poison in his claws prevented magic from speeding up the healing process. Everyone gasped.

"That's what Snape meant when he said you were injured worse than Malfoy," Harry whispered. It was so silent that everyone heard. I nodded my head. Lav and Vati helped me stand up. Professor Lupin gave me a sad smile before carrying on with the class. He knew my pain. Werewolf bites hurt almost as bad as my wounds.

When we all left, everyone was laughing about Professor Snape in Neville's grandmother's clothes. Harry was grumbling about how Professor Lupin hadn't let him take on the Boggart. Get over, you should be glad you don't have to see your worst fear. I had to relive that whole thing. It was awful!

Next weekend was a Hogsmeade weekend. I was really excited. I wanted to find Sirius. I was going to search the back streets for him. "I've got," Lav said, slamming her hand down on the table. She grabbed her wand and began to float me out of the common room. Vati ran after us. Lav brought us to the bathroom and closed and locked the door. "Make a rainbow, Nina!" she demanded. I was a little confused, but made one anyways. Lav through a drachma in. "Oh, Iris, goddess of the rainbow, please accept my offering. Show me Sirius Black, I have no idea where he is." The rainbow shimmered and a man appeared on a cave floor.

I gasped and he immediately sat up. He twisted the ring on his finger and it turned into a bronze sword. "Who's there?" His voice was hoarse from lack of use.

"I'm Lavender Brown, daughter of Aphrodite," Lavender said. He looked up at us. "This Is Parvati Patil, also a daughter of Aphrodite."

"I'm Christina Jackson-" before I could say my heritage, he cut me off.

"The daughter of Poseidon." I nodded my head.

"My father visited me in my dreams saying that you were at Hogwarts. When I found out Pettigrew was there too, I broke out to protect you. No one hurts my family. I'm assuming Chiron told you three I'm innocent since you're Iris Messaging me." We nodded our heads. "So, what can I do for you?"

"Well, this weekend is a Hogsmeade weekend, so we were wondering if we could come talk to you." Vati said this all very quickly and Sirius laughed at her.

"Course you can. It does get very lonely up here. Tell you what, I'll meet you at the entrance to Hogsmeade in my animagus form its-"

"I've seen it. I had a dream about you escaping," I interrupted.

He nodded. "Well I'll meet you at the entrance and bring you up here. Then, you can visit whenever you have a Hogsmeade weekend." We nodded and waved our goodbyes. Sirius slashed his sword through the rainbow. Well, that's that taken care of.

The next day at breakfast, Lav and Vati got a letter. Their little sister, Bunny had been killed when she visited her father. A dracaena had taken her life. Vati was trying not to cry as she held a sobbin Lavender outside of the Transfiguration classroom. I hugged both girls. "What's the matter, Lavender?" Hermione asked timidly.

"It's Bunny," Parvati whispered sadly. "She's been killed by a snake."

"Oh, I'm sorry Lavender." Lav just sobbed harder. I began to rub her back.

"I should have known! You know what day it is?"

"Er-" said Hermione.

"The 16th of October! 'That thing you're dreading, it will happen on the 16th of October!' Remember? She was right, she was right!"

Hermione gulped nervously. The whole class had gathered around us. "You-you were dreading your bunny being killed by a snake?" Why did you go and say that, Hermione? You're just going to make it worse. I shot her a glare and continued to rub Lav's back.

"Well, not necessarily a snake, but I was obviously dreading her dying, wasn't I?"

"Oh, was your bunny old?"

"N-no! Sh-she was only s-seven!"

I tightened my arms around Lavender.

"Well, that's pretty old for a rabbit," Hermione retorted. Bunny is a little girl! "Look at it logically. I mean her bunny didn't even die today, did she? Lavender just got the news today. And she can't have been dreading it because it's come as a real shock-"

I had enough. I let go of Lavender and flipped around. "First of all, Granger, seven is very young for Bunny because Bunny is Lavender's little sister!" Everyone gasped and Hermione backed away from me nervously. "Bunny died at 1:00 am New York time! That is today! And just because someone was dreading it doesn't mean they can't be upset about it so will you be quiet!" Hermione shrunk back.

"Don't mind Hermione, Lavender," said Ron rather loudly, "she doesn't think other people's feelings matter very much." I was about to turn to Ron, when Professor McGonagall opened her door.

At the end of class, Professor McGonagall held us back. "One moment please! As you're all in my House, you should hand Hogsmeade permission forms to me. No form, no visiting the village, so don't forget!"

A few weeks later, Halloween, we were all ready to go to Hogsmeade. My back had finally healed and I was walking around freely. I wouldn't stop moving. I loved being able to move around again. I think my movement was annoying everyone else though. Oh well. Not even seeing Filch when we were exiting the Entrance Hall dampened my mood. I skipped the rest of the way down to Hogsmeade.

When we got to the entrance to the village, I dragged Lav and Vati over to where I spotted Sirius in his dog form. He barked happily when he saw us. I laughed and scratched behind his ears. He ran off and we followed behind him up to his cave.

When we were inside the cave, Sirius changed back and led us over to a fire. "So, how's camp these days?"

"Great," I grinned. "It's so much fun. Travis and Connor Stoll, they're your half-brothers, are always pranking everyone. Once, they put a bunch of plastic spiders in the Athena cabin. That was the best."

Sirius laughed. "Sounds like something my siblings would do. You guys didn't bring any food up here, did you? I haven't had a good meal for 12 years."

"Oh yeah! What do you want? I have anything you could possibly imagine."

"Pizza?" I grinned at him and took a hold of my food charm. I wished for pizza. When I opened my eyes, there it was. "But, Gump's law...You can't create food...How?" Sirius stuttered.

"A gift from Lord Apollo," I laughed at his face. He nodded and I handed a slice to everyone. For the next few hours, we ate pizza, drank soda, and talked.

"You guys should be getting back, it's getting late." I looked outside. Wow, time really does fly. We all stood up and Sirius turned back into a dog. We followed him back to the entrance of Hogwarts. We were about to say goodbye, but he kept walking towards the castle. I shrugged and kept following him. When we got back to the castle, he barked and we waved to him. We ran inside to get changed for the Halloween feast.

After the feast, we all went up to the portrait of the Fat Lady. The hallway leading up to her was jam packed with students. "Why isn't anyone going in?" Ron asked from my left. I shrugged.

"Let me through, please," came Percy's voice from behind me. "What's the hold up here? You can't all have forgotten the password-excuse me-I'm Head Boy-"

I rolled my eyes at his arrogance. Percy stopped talking for a bit before he continued, "Somebody get Professor Dumbledore. Quick!"

"What's going on?" asked Ginny who had just arrived.

"Oh my-" gasped Hermione as she caught a glimpse of what was going on ahead. The Fat Lady had vanished from her portrait. There was bronze knife embedded in the wall next to it. It was Celestial Bronze. I looked at Lav and Vati. They nodded to show that they had recognized it too. Sirius must have left it there. Peeves started cackling saying he had seen her.

"Did she say who did it?" Professor Dumbledore asked him.

"Oh yes, Professorhead," said Peeves. "He got very angry when she wouldn't let him in, you see. Nasty temper he's got, that Sirius Black."

Professor Dumbledore sent us all back to the Great Hall. We were joined by the other houses soon after. Everyone was panicking and the Head Boy and Head Girl weren't doing a very good job at calming people down. "Nina, play something," Lavender whispered into my ear. "That always calms people down." Vati nodded her agreement and I summoned my guitar from my bracelet. What to play? Ah, I've got it.

You know the bed feels warmer

Sleeping here alone

You know I dream in colour

And do the things I want

You think you got the best of me

Think you've had the last laugh

Bet you think that everything good is gone

Think you left me broken down

Think that I'd come running back

Baby you don't know me, cause you're dead wrong

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Stand a little taller

Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone

What doesn't kill you makes a fighter

Footsteps even lighter

Doesn't mean I'm over cause you're gone

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, stronger

Just me, myself and I

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Stand a little taller

Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone

You heard that I was starting over with someone new

They told you I was moving on over you

You didn't think that I'd come back

I'd come back swinging

You try to break me, but you see

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Stand a little taller

Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone

What doesn't kill you makes a fighter

Footsteps even lighter

Doesn't mean I'm over cause you're gone

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, stronger

Just me, myself and I

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Stand a little taller

Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone

Thanks to you I got a new thing started

Thanks to you I'm not the broken-hearted

Thanks to you I'm finally thinking about me

You know in the end the day you left was just my beginning

In the end...

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Stand a little taller

Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone

What doesn't kill you makes a fighter

Footsteps even lighter

Doesn't mean I'm over cause you're gone

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, stronger

Just me, myself and I

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Stand a little taller

Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, stronger

Just me, myself and I

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Stand a little taller

Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone

When I'm alone

When I was done, everyone began to clap. "Now," I said, "listen to the Head Boy and Girl. They've been trying to get your attention." I sat back down and put my guitar away. That song I had written a few years back. It was to Sally. I don't know why I decided to sing it to these people, it just felt right. I closed my eyes and fell asleep.


	41. Chapter 40: Forgiveness

**This is my longest chapter yet. 6,000 words total! It took me forever to write. It is the start of the Titan's Curse. Nina and Apollo finally make up. I changed a few things like in the Capture the Flag game because I don't want Percy and Thalia to fight. Other than that, everything is the same or at least similar. Thank you for your review, AlexLovesDanHowell. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter 40: Forgiveness

During the next Quidditch game, dementors swarmed the field. Harry passed out. Dumbledore did this spell that made Harry float more slowly so he didn't get hurt. Unfortunately, his Nimbus 2000 flew into the Whomping Willow. There was no saving it.

The day after McGonagall came around asking everyone who wanted to come home for Christmas, I got a letter from my brother.

Dear Nina,

There's an emergency. Grover found two really powerful demigods. He needs our help to go get them. Please come home. Thalia and Annabeth are coming too. They're up in Maine. If you don't come home, I will fly up with Blackjack and drag you home.

Love,

Percy

I already told McGonagall I was going to stay. I ran out of the Great Hall and up to her office. I started pounding on the door.

"What is it, Miss Jackson? You should be down having lunch with everyone else."

"I need to go home for Christmas Break," I panted. "Family emergency."

She seemed shocked by my answer. "O-of course. If that is all, you may go." I turned around and left. I ran up to my dorm to start packing. Why couldn't you send that letter yesterday, Perce?

A few days later, I was sitting in a car with Percy, Thalia, Annabeth, and Sally on our way to Maine. Annabeth sat up front with Sally and I sat between Percy and Thalia. I hadn't seen my brother or cousin since late August, yet none of us were talking. We were all too nervous. Sally was talking. She always talks when she's nervous. By the time we got to Westover, the military school that the demigods were at, she had told Annabeth and Thalia every embarrassing baby story about me and my brother.

Westover Hall looked like Hogwarts. It was nowhere near as impressive, though. It wasn't as big either. "Oh yeah, this'll be fun," snorted Thalia.

"Are you sure you don't want me to wait?" asked Sally as we all clambered out of the car. I walked around back with Thalia to grab the bags.

"No thanks, Mom," Percy said. "I don't know how long it will take. We'll be okay, Nina and I can just call Blackjack and Silvermist."

"I know," she sighed. "I'm just worried about you, Percy." Percy and I were the only ones who noticed she hadn't said she was worried about me. I looked up in time to see Percy glare at my mother. I gave him a soft smile.

"It's okay, Ms. Jackson. We'll keep them out of trouble." Annabeth smiled reassuringly at Sally. I rolled my eyes.

"Alright dears. Do you have everything you need?"

"Yes, Ms. Jackson. Thanks for the ride," said Thalia. Sally waved and pulled out of the parking lot. We were officially stranded in Maine. How lovely. "Your mom is so cool, guys," laughed Thalia once my mom was out of sight.

"She's pretty okay," Percy answered. "What about you? You ever get in touch with your mom?" I looked back at Thalia. She was looking at the ground. She didn't answer the question. I wonder what happened to her mom. Annabeth said she had met Thalia while she was on the run. Maybe Thalia was on the run too.

When we walked inside, all I could see were weapons. There were tons of guns and swords all over the walls. It seemed to be a little overkill. There was definitely a fight coming. I jumped when the doors slammed shut behind us. This place was creepy. We hid our duffel bags behind a column. There was music coming from the other end of the hall. That must be where the dance was. We started walking to the doors at the end of the hall when two teachers walked in front of us. One was a man who had two different colored eyes and was clean shaven. The other was a woman with a wispy moustache. Yup, very backwards in my opinion. Both had short, grey hair. "Well?" the woman demanded. "What are you doing here?"

"Um..."began my brother. We so did not plan for this. "Ma'am we're just-"

"Ha!" the man interrupted. "Visitors are not allowed at the dance! You shal be eee-jected." He had a french accent and pronounced the J like in Jacques. Thalia stepped forward and snapped her fingers.

"Oh, but we're not visitors, sir," she said. "We go to school here. I'm Thalia, that's Nina, she's Annabeth, and this is Percy. We're in eighth grade." What the Hades was Thalia thinking. Now we'll get punished even worse. I didn't think that punishment here was just a detention.

"Mrs. Gottschalk, do you know these students?" Her name is Gottschalk? You have got to be kidding me.

The woman blinked. "I...yes. I believe I do, sir. Annabeth. Thalia. Percy. Christina. What are you doing away from the gymnasium?

Grover came running in before she could finish. "You made it! You-" he gasped. He stopped when he saw Mrs. Gottschalk and the man. "Oh, Mrs. Gottschalk. Dr. Thorn! I, uh-"

"What is it, Mr. Underwood? What do you mean they made it? These students live here," said who I can only assume was Dr. Thorn. He didn't seem to entirely believe that. His aura was funny. Maybe he is the monster. Grover nodded and quickly explained how he meant we made the punch. Grover ushered us to the gym and I had to stop myself from looking back at Dr. Thorn several times. I could sense him watching us. It freaked me out.

When we got to the gym, I hugged Grover. Grover had gotten little taller, but otherwise looked the same. He was wearing a black T-shirt. I couldn't make it out at first, but eventually I unscrambled the words just enough to make out WESTOVER HALL: GRUNT. I wasn't sure if that was the motto of the school or Grover's rank. "So, what's the emergency?" I asked, still looking at the shirt.

"There's a monster hunting down the two half-bloods I found," Grover said after taking a deep breath. Finding one half-blood was pretty rare. Chiron had all the satyrs scouring schools from fourth grade to high school. These were desperate times. Kronos was rising and we needed to have enough half-bloods to fight him. We were losing campers and fast. "A brother and a sister," Grover continued. "They're ten and twelve. I don't know their parentage, but they're strong. We're running out of time though. I need help."

"Monsters?" I asked.

"One," Grover said, looking a little nervous. This must be a bad monster. "Everytime I try to get close to them, he's always there, blocking me. I don't know what to do!"

"Right," said Thalia. "These half-bloods are at the dance?" Grover nodded. "Then let's dance. Who's the monster?"

"Oh, you've just met him. The vice principal, Dr. Thorn." I was right. I gulped nervously and placed my hand on my hip where Mov was resting. "There they are," Grover said nodding to a pair of Italian kids sitting up on the bleachers. I knew those kids.

"Bianca and Nico di Angelo," I said.

"You know them?" Percy asked me.

"I met them in the Lotus Hotel and Casino. The gods only know how old they are."

"Do they...I mean, have you told them?" asked Annabeth,

Grover shook his head. "So let's grab them and get out of here," said Percy. He started forward, but I put my hand on his shoulder to hold him back. Dr. Thorn wa standing in front of them. He definitely had not been fooled by Thalia's trick with the Mist.

"Don't look at the kids," Thalia ordered. "We have to wait for a chance to get them. We need to pretend we're not interested in them. Throw him off the scent."

"How?" I asked.

"We're all very powerful. Mingle. Act natural and let your scents confuse him. But, keep an eye on the di Angelos."

"Should we dance?" asked Annabeth.

Thalia nodded, grinning insanely. "Ugh," I groaned. "Who chose the Jesse Mcartney?"

"I did," Grover said. He seemed slightly hurt.

"Oh my gods, Grover. That is so lame. Can't you play, like, Green Day or something?"Thalia snorted.

"Green who?" asked Grover. Thalia and I stared at him open mouthed. Who doesn't know who Green Day is.

"Never mind," she sighed. "Let's dance, Goat Boy."

"But I can't dance."

"You can if I'm leading." Thalia dragged a terrified Grover away. Annabeth and Percy left me to go dance with each other. Well, I'm on my own now. I looked around the gym, trying to find a cute guy my age. A blonde boy with blue eyes smirked at me and began to walk over to me. Wow, he really looks like Apollo. Oh no, Apollo! Would dancing with that boy be considered cheating on him? I quickly sat down on the bleachers. I spread my aqua dress out over my knees. We all had dressed for the dance, Grover having warned us ahead of time. I was wearing a matching pair of ballet flats with a pure white bow on the top that was covered with white sparkles.

"Hey, my name's Aaron Fisher. You look like you could use someone to dance with. What's your name?"

"Christina Jackson," I said. Aaron offered me his hand. I stared at it for a second. It's not like Apollo and I are actually dating. We're just supposed to get married. Besides, it's just a dance. I reached up to take his hand. He pulled me up and wrapped his arm around my waist. A slow dance came on. He began to sway me back and forth. He was a really good dancer. I focused all my attention on not stepping on his feet.

"So, Christina-"

"Call me Nina. I hate Christina."

"Right, Nina, what grade are you in, I don't remember seeing you around with the other freshmen."

"Oh, I'm in eighth grade." That's what Percy said. I don't know how grades work here in America. We go by years at Hogwarts. Please don't let eighth grade be freshmen, whatever that is.

"Ah, so you are a year younger than me." I sighed in relief and nodded. The song ended and he gave me a twirl. He was about to take me to another dance, when I felt a tap on my back.

"Hey, Nina. What's up?"

I turned around and saw Nico. "Hi Nico, I'm just dancing with Aaron here."

Nico glanced around me to see the older boy. Aaron scowled at Nico for interrupting our dancing. I frowned at him. "Well," continued Nico, "c'mon, I want to show you something." He grabbed my hand and began pulling me over to his sister. I waved apologetically at Aaron and followed Nico. Dr. Thorn scowled at me. I ignored him and sat down with Nico. Bianca smiled shyly at me.

"Hey, Nina. Didn't think we'd see you again. What are you doing here?"

"It's a long story, Bianca," I laughed. "Now, what did you want to show me, Nico?" Nico began showing me all his mythomagic cards. I was shocked they both remembered me. I didn't think they would if we ever saw each other again. I hadn't thought we would see each other again either.

When Nico had finished showing me his cards and figurines, Bianca began to talk again. "I saw you dancing with Aaron Fisher," she said. I nodded my head. "Be careful with him, I heard he's a player. He jumps from girl to girl faster than Nico eats spaghetti." Nico blushed and I laughed.

"It was just a dance, Bi, don't worry."

I didn't notice Dr. THorn come up behind me until one of his hands was taking my knife from its sheath and the other was covering my mouth to keep me from screaming. "Come with me now, demigods," he snarled at Bianca and Nico. They quickly stood up.

I bit Thorn's hand and he pulled it away from my mouth. I managed to say, "Run!" before he stuffed a piece of cloth in my mouth, effectively gagging me. He grabbed my arms and pinned them behind my back with one hand. He grabbed Nico's shoulder and began shoving us along. Bianca followed us to make sure her brother and I were safe.

Thorn led us down many hallways. I could feel his hand getting bigger and his grip tighter. He was transforming into his monster form. I kept struggling, but it wasn't working. Eventually, he had us outside. He disappeared and we all turned around. Bianca held Nico close to her and I pulled my wand from its holster. "Lumos," I muttered. I lit it up and almost jumped back off the cliff when I saw Percy right in front of me. He pulled me into a hug which I gladly returned. We looked at Bianca and Nico and tried to comfort them. Bianca pointed to behind us. My brother and I turned around. "Oh!" I said.

Dr. Thorn was standing behind us. Except, he no longer was Dr. Thorn. He was the Manticore. Great, just great. Percy pulled out Riptide. Dr. Thorn still had Mov. He brandished it at us. I used the water in the air to grab the knife. I pulled it out of the air. Dr. Thorn scowled at us and shot something at us. Percy tried to dive out of the way but it was too late. A thorn from the manticore's tail embedded itself in my brother's shoulder. "Yes, Perseus and Christina Jackson. His accent made the J in my last name sound funny. I couldn't stop myself from giggling. It was just so funny! "I know who you two are. Thank you for coming out of the gym. I hate school dances, and middle schoolers and high schoolers together in a dance just make them worse." Bianca yelped as another thorn flew at us and embedded us in my arm. I cringed as I pulled it out. It burnt so much. It was coated in poison. "All four of you will come with me. Quietly. Obediently. If you make a single noise, if you call out for help or try to fight, I will show you just how accurately I can throw." I gulped, please let the others find us.\

As we walked, Percy closed his eyes. "What are you doing, Jackson? Keep moving," hissed Thorn. I grabbed his arm and led him along. He whispered his thanks and began to concentrate again. I didn't know what my brother was doing, but he better hurry. "There is a clearing ahead. There we will summon your ride."

"What ride?" Bianca growled as she pulled Nico closer to her. "Where are you taking us?"

"Quiet you insufferable girl!" Thorn snapped at her. I growled at him.

"Don't talk to my sister that way!" yelled Nico. Bianca and I quickly shushed him. Percy kept doing whatever it was he was doing.

"Halt," shouted Thorn. We all stopped and turned to face him. I pulled Nico behind Bianca and me. Thorn pushed Percy to the end, but Bianca quickly caught him.

"What is he?" asked Bianca. "How do we fight him?"

She was brave. "I-I'm working on it," Percy whispered.

I took out my wand. Thorn wanted to hide, I'll give him something to hide from. "Incendio!" I cried. Fire burst from my wand. The flames shot into the center of the clearing. Thorn just managed to jump aside and not get burnt.

"I'm scared," mumbled Nico. Thorn growled and jumped toward me. I flinched back and would have fallen off the cliff if Nico wasn't there. Percy stretched Riptide out in front of Thorn. He hissed and lurched to the side. He backed up.

"Stop talking! Face me!" sneered the manticore. He pulled out a walkie-talkie. Pressing the button, he said, "The package-it is ready to deliver." That didn't sound good. I looked back over the cliff. Maybe, I could take the di Angelos and jump. They would be safe as long as they held on to either me or Percy. "By all means, Daughter of Poseidon. Jump. Save yourself."

"What did he call you?" asked Bianca.

"I'll explain later," I whispered back.

"You do have a plan, right?"

"Nope," I replied.

"I would kill you before you could reach the water. You do realize who I am, do you?" Thorn prompted.

"Luke," Percy gasped. "You work for Luke."

Thorn told us about the General. Who is he? Maybe, he's a titan. I shuddered, I didn't want to meet him. Somehow, I knew that's where Thorn wanted to take her. "Where are you taking us?" asked Nico.

"You should be honored, my boy. You will have the opportunity to join a great army! Just like that game you play with with those silly dolls and cards."

"They're not dolls! They're figurines!" snapped Nico. "And you can take your great army and-" I clapped my hand over Nico's mouth. The gods only know what words he learned in the Lotus Hotel and Casino. We didn't have a chance to say anything else when an invisible force slammed into us. Annabeth. I saw Thalia run in behind Thorn with Grover. Aegis was on her left arm and in her right hand, was her spear. Electricity crackled up and down it. She looked absolutely terrifying. I was so glad that she was an ally. There was no way I would willingly go up against her.

"For Zeus!" she shouted. Thalia slashed and stabbed at Thorn. I was really impressed by her. I heard a helicopter in the distance. Really not good. Grover began to play his reed pipes. Thick weeds began to wrap up Thorn's legs and tangle them up.

"Who are you people?" demanded Bianca.

"A manticore?" Nico gasped as he stared at Thorn. "He's got 3,000 attack power plus five for saving throws!"

"This isn't the same as mythomagic, Nico!" I shouted as I rushed in. "THis isn't a game. We could very easily die." I slashed at Thorn and left a good sized gash on his chest. He slashed at me with his claws. I just managed to jump out of the way. The skirt of my dress whipped around my legs in the wind and Thorn almost managed to grab it to pull me forwards.

Silver arrows flew from the woods as Thorn finished shredding the weeds off his legs. The archers rushed from the woods. The youngest was maybe 8 and the oldest was 15. They all had silvery parkas and jeans. An auburn-haired girl was in the front. Together, they all fired arrows at each other. "The Hunters!" Annabeth cried.

"How wonderful," Thalia grumbled. I glanced at her curiously before turning back to the battle. A bronze-skinned girl stepped forward. I had met her once when I was 9. She and Artemis had taken me to the movies. Her name was Zoe Nightshade.

"Permission to kill, My Lady?"

"This is not fair," wailed Thorn. "Direct interference! It is against the Ancient Laws."

"Not so," the auburn-haired girl said as she stepped forward. Artemis, I hadn't seen her in over a year. I had missed her. "The hunting of wild beasts is within my domain. And you, foul creature, are a wild beast. Zoe, permission granted." Zoe let her arrow fly. Thorn leapt towards us and Annabeth jumped on his back to knock him out of the way. Together, they tumbled off the cliff. Artemis thrust out her hand and the helicopter exploded.

Artemis stepped forward and I bowed to her. "Do not bow to me, my friend." I looked up at her and she pulled me into a hug. "I have missed you, Nina. As has my brother."

"I missed you too, Artemis, although I cannot bring myself to believe what you say about Lord Apollo."

"Ah, yes. He told me about your last encounter. Come, let us talk away from the eyes of the others." Artemis told her Huntresses to set up camp then led me into the woods. "Why is it that you are so mad?"

"Why is it that neither of you thought it prudent to tell me of the prophecy?" I retorted.

"You know, I hate when you answer with another question. We did not know you were the daughter of Poseidon until a few weeks before we picked you up from the train station a yer and a half ago. I cannot say I know why my brother did not tell you of the prophecy then, but it was not the reason we chose to befriend you. You are a closer friend than even Zoe, my lead Huntress. And I do not think Apollo has ever loved anyone as much as he does you. Now, tell me what you know of the prophecy."

"All I know is that Apollo and I are supposed to get married."

"Hm, that is what Ares told you? Well, there is much more than just that. I will let Apollo tell you as he will be coming to pick you, your friends, and my Huntresses up and taking you to Camp Half-Blood. We should be getting back. I do not want to see what will happen to your brother and the satyr when left in the presence of my Huntresses for too long." I laughed and we stood up, running back to the clearing. What else could there be to the prophecy?

When we got back, I saw many tents set up around the fire I had created earlier. Artemis brought Bianca and Percy into the biggest one. I sat with Thalia and she told me about her experience with the Hunters. Skittles sat on my shoulder and I told Thalia of any input my owl had. Thalia laughed at most of my owls comments. When Artemis, Percy, and Bianca stepped out of the tent, Bianca was dressed in the silvery clothes of the Huntresses. I was saddened slightly by this. My friend wouldn't get to enjoy camp. Poor Nico, he won't get to have his sister by his side.

Artemis walked up and stood next to me. We stared out towards the east. Slowly, a light began to rise. We all shut our eyes as the bright light hurtled to us. When is had dimmed, I opened my eyes. Right in front of me was a cherry red Maserati Spyder. It was my dream car. If only it was purple.

On the opposite side of the car, a blonde teenager got out. He walked around and smirked at us all. I glared at him slightly then stopped. Artemis said he didn't know I was the daughter of Poseidon. There is no reason to be mad at him. Then again, once he found out who I was he didn't tell me the prophecy. Okay, there is a reason to be mad, but I'm going to hear him out. Yeah, I'll just stay cool until he explains. I took a deep breath before looking up at Apollo. He looked the same as I remembered him. The only difference was his smile didn't seem as bright. This was just temporarily blinding. On a good day, his grin could give you sunburn.

Apollo was in his 19-year-old form. Still 6 years older than me. "Wow," Thalia muttered. "Apollo is hot." I scowled at her, she was talking about my future husband even if I didn't like him very much at the moment.

"He is the sun god," Percy whispered back.

"That's not what she meant," I groaned at my brother's stupidity.

"Little sister!" Apollo laughed. "What's up? You never call. You never write. I was getting worried." Thank the gods, he still hasn't noticed me.

Artemis sighed. "I'm fine Apollo. And I'm not your little sister." I was so used to seeing the twin archers the same age. It was weird seeing one 12 and the other 19.

"Hey, I was born first!"

We're twins! How many millenia do I have to argue about-"

"So, what's up? Got the girls with you I see. You all-" he stopped mid sentence. Uh oh, he had finally spotted me. Everyone was looking around for the reason he had paused. I looked up into his blue eyes. They were the same color as the sky when there are no clouds. I had never noticed how beautiful they were. "Hey, Sparkles," he whispered. Somehow I knew I was the only one who heard him. "I missed you." I broke the eye contact and looked at my feet. I noticed my shoes were soaked. Apollo's car had melted the snow.

"Hi," I murmured. Everyone seemed to give up on their hunt for Apollo's reason to stop mid sentence. I knew Artemis had known the reason and was just being polite when she turned away. I think it was the same with Zoe. SHe told him of our predicament. Apollo nodded and began to take a headcount of the campers.

Let's see, Thalia, right? I've heard all about you."

Thalia was blushing insanely and I scowled at her. Apollo and Artemis were the only ones to notice and they both shot me knowing smirks. "Hi, Lord Apollo."

"Zeus' girl, yes? Makes you my half sister. Used to be a tree, didn't you?" Thalia didn't seem too happy when Apollo said that. "Glad you're back. I hate it when pretty girls turn into trees. Man, I remember this one time-" I turned my scowl towards Apollo. He grinned at me. "Percy Jackson," he said, rounding on my brother.

"Yeah, I mean...yes, sir." Apollo just stared at my brother like he knew something the rest of us didn't. Then, he turned to me.

"Christina Jackson." I looked up at him. "You're hurt." I looked down at the cut on my arm where the spike from the manticore had been. "Here, let me heal it." Apollo held out his hand and I cautiously stepped forwards. He gently placed his hand where the wound was and closed his eyes. His hand began to glow with a golden light.

"What's the prophecy?" I asked him. He looked up at me, opening his eyes.

"The first born daughter of the sea shall be the sun's true love

Born into two different worlds,

She will face many challenges

She will learn much from the twin archers

And will save all those who are innocent

She shall be the sun's one true love"

"That's nothing like what Ares told me. He said that we were to be married. That was it. Nothing about us actually loving each other."

Apollo smiled sadly at me. "I should have told you the prophecy before I brought you to camp. I'm sorry, Sparkles. Please don't hate me."

"I don't think I ever really could hate you. You mean too much to me." He grinned and let go of my arm. It had been fully healed before he had even told me the prophecy, but no one needed to know that.

"Right," Apollo said to the group at large. "Everybody in." Zoe and the rest of the Huntresses filed into the back of the bus. Apollo had transformed the Maserati into a small bus so we could all fit in. The rest of us sat in the front. For some reason, Apollo let Thalia drive. Not good, she's afraid of heights. She had only ever told two people: me and Luke.

Apollo had to explain to Nico how the Romans couldn't afford all the temples so had gotten rid of Selene and Helios and given the job of sun and moon god to him and Artemis while he set Thalia up at the wheel. He sat down in the front seat across from the driver. I was in that seat. Unfortunately, it was only made for one person. Apollo lifted me up and placed me on his lap. Percy didn't seem too happy about that. I didn't mind at all. I hadn't slept at all in 24 hours and Apollo really was comfier than even the beds in Hogwarts. I fell asleep almost instantly.

I woke up to someone poking me. I groaned and opened my eyes. I jumped back when I got a face full of Apollo. Sadly, this caused me to land on the floor of the bus. Everyone else was filing off the bus looking slightly queasy. Everyone except Nico. The kid was bouncing up and down. I wonder what I had missed. Apollo scooped me up off the floor and I curled up back into his chest, ready to fall back asleep. He laughed at me. When he carried me off the bus, I could practically feel everyone's eyes on me. Apollo put me down and waved at his children. They waved back cautiously, but were still very confused about why their dad had just carried me off the sun chariot. Oh well. I waved to Apollo before walking off to go find Chiron.

I found Chiron with Grover, Nico, and Percy on the porch of the Big House. "What was that with you and Lord Apollo," demanded my brother. Nico looked confused by what was wrong with me falling asleep on top of a god. Ah, children and their innocence. It's always so refreshing. Chiron and Grover exchanged looks. "Do you know about the prophecy?" Chiron asked me gently.

I nodded. "The first born daughter of the sea shall be the sun's true love

Born into two different worlds,

She will face many challenges

She will learn much from the twin archers

And will save all those who are innocent

She shall be the sun's one true love"

Chiron nodded. Percy looked shocked. "Wait, what?"

I sighed. "Percy, I, the first born daughter of the sea, or Poseidon, am destined to fall in love with Apollo. I was born into two different worlds, the godly world and the magical world. I have faced many challenges and will probably face many more. I have been taught a lot by the twin archers, Artemis and Apollo. I am supposed to save innocent people's lives."

Percy nodded his head slowly before saying, "Fine, but I'm not happy about that. Apollo has a reputation as a player god." I rolled my eyes at my brother. I don't know if he realizes this, but our dad does have an immortal wife.

"Grover, perhaps you should take Nico to see the orientation film."

"Orientation film? Is it G or PG?" asked Nico. "'Cause Bianca's kind of strict."  
"It's PG13," laughed Grover as he led Nico out of the room. The rest of us told Chiron the whole story. Chiron wanted to send out a search party, but Mr. D. refused. He didn't want to lose any more campers. Chiron sighed and sent us outside.

The campers were all getting ready for the capture the flag game that we have with the Huntresses every time they come to visit. Even the Aphrodite cabin was getting involved. Normally, Lav and Vati were the only ones who helped out. Silena was muttered something about stupid Huntresses who don't believe in love and how she was going to show them. You go, girl! Thalia and Percy decided co-lead. That is so not going to work. They argue all the time. Not good for us. Thalia told me to stick with Nico and show him the ropes. I was going to do that anyway no matter what she told me to do. I gave Nico Mov to fight with and I told him he better not lose it because that was my only knife. He nodded eagerly and I showed him a few moves with it. I summoned my bow and quiver from my bracelet.

I led Nico out to the other side when I heard Chiron blow his horn. When I saw a Hunter trying to cross the stream, I froze the part they were in. They were stuck. She glared at me and I stuck my tongue out at her. "Cool!" grinned Nico. "Can I do that?" I laughed at his eagerness.

"Probably not, only children of Poseidon can do that and I don't think you're my half brother. You don't have the eyes that every child of Poseidon has." Nico frowned, but then started asking about the powers of all the other demigods. I laughed and told him all I knew. Suddenly, I saw Thalia running towards us with the flag. I started to run next to her with Nico trailing behind us. A bunch of campers got behind us and began to defend Thalia from the Hunters.

We were almost to the stream. I could still see the Huntress frozen in the water. I saw Zoe running at us with the Camp flag. As soon as she touched the water, I froze her feet in place. She was barely a few inches from the Hunter's side of the forest. I froze the entire stream, and Thalia slid across to victory. We won! Chiron blew his horn and I hugged Nico and we jumped up and down, laughing. "Campers win!" he shouted. Campers: 1, Hunters: 55!" Alright, those were some pretty bad statistics, but we won. Thalia and Percy joined me and Nico. We looked kind of funny, what with all of us wearing armor, but we didn't care. The campers lifted Thalia and me up on their shoulders and started parading us around the clearing. They froze when one of the bushes rustled.

From behind the bushes, something I hoped to never see again appeared. The Oracle in all its mummified glory. I walked towards Zoe and green mist started to seep from its mouth. I didn't know it could walk. I'm sure Apollo would be happy about that. "I am the spirit of Delphi. Approach seeker and ask." The campers put Thalia and me down so they could cover their ears. I just watched Zoe step up.

"What must I do to help my goddess?'

"Six shall go west to the goddess in chains,

One shall be lost in the land without rain,

The bane of Olympus shows the trail,

The Titan's curse must two withstand,

And one shall perish by a parent's hand."

Everyone looked at each other. Not even the monsters in the woods were making any sounds. I decided to break the silence. "Well, that was ominous."


	42. Chapter 41: Council and the Smithsonian

**Here's the next chapter. There is more Apollo/Nina bonding at the end. Enjoy!**

Chapter Forty: Council and the Smithsonian

Dionysus held a council about the prophecy. All the cabin leaders were supposed to attend. Percy and I both led our cabin because we were the same age and were here an equal amount of summers. We sat together at the end of the ping pong table next to Thalia. Yeah, we hold war council around a ping pong table, get over it.

Dionysus supplied snacks. He waved his hand and cheez whiz, some crackers, and a few bottles of red wine appeared. The Stoll brothers were all for the wine, but Chiron reminded him about his restrictions and that most of us were under aged. Mr. D. snapped his fingers and the wine turned to Diet Coke.

Grover was here too. He represented the satyrs. For the Aphrodite cabin, we had Silena and Beckendorf from the Hephaestus cabin. They waved at me. The Stolls were from the Hermes cabin, and Lee Fletcher represented Apollo. He gave me that look that said, 'We need to talk.' He and the rest of his siblings probably wanted to know why there dad had been carrying me. That was one awkward conversation I didn't want to have. Katie Gardner was here for the Demeter cabin, and both Castor and Pollux were representing Dionysus. The Ares cabin didn't send in a representative because they all had mysteriously gotten broken limbs during Capture the Flag. Zoe and Bianca represented the Huntresses.

Zoe began to lecture us on how she should go west with six Huntresses. "You're missing something as usual," Thalia interrupted her. Uh oh, here we go again. "Campers and Hunters combined prevail. We're supposed to do this together."

"No! The Hunters do not need thy help."

"Your! No one has said thy in, like, 300 years Zoe. Get with the times."

We were all watching the two girls like they were a tennis, er, ping pong match.

"I fear the prophecy says you do need our help," CHiron broke into the conversation. "Campers and Hunters must cooperate."

"Or do they?" asked Mr. D. "One shall be lost. One shall perish. That sounds rather nasty, doesn't it? What if you fail because you try to cooperate?"

"Father," sighed Castor, "with all due respect, whose side are you on?"

"Sorry, my dear son, just trying to be helpful."

"We must not delay. Today is Sunday and Friday is the Solstice. Artemis must be present at the Solstice. If she is absent, we will lose another year of war preparations," said Zoe.

"Are you suggesting the gods have trouble acting together, young lady?" asked Dionysus.

"Yes, Lord Dionysus."

"Just checking. You're right, of course. Carry on."

"Now, we must decide who goes on this quest," Chiron said.

"Three and three," I said. Everyone looked at me. "We're supposed to have 6. Three Hunters and three from Camp Half-Blood. I'm going, I don't care what anyone says. Now, we just need to figure out the prophecy." People all nodded their agreement.

"Well, it sounds like at least two of the five are going to die," said Connor Stoll.

"One shall be lost in the land without rain. If I were you, I would stay out of the desert," Beckendorf said.

"And the Titan's curse must two withstand. What could that mean?" asked Silena. Chiron and Zoe exchanged nervous looks. I don't like the looks of that.

"One shall perish by a parent's hand," continued Grover. He was eating cheez whiz covered ping pong balls. "How is that possible? Whose parent would want to kill them?" I glanced at Percy and Thalia. The prophecy, we were all nearing the age in the Great Prophecy. Percy and I would most likely be the ones who would be killed though. The prophecy did speak of two half-bloods reaching that age.

'Two Campers should definitely go," said Silena.

"Oh, I see. And I suppose you wish to volunteer?" Zoe said, sarcastically.

"I'm not going anywhere with the Hunters. Don't look at me."

"A daughter of Aphrodite does not wish to be looked at," Zoe scoffed. I growled at her. "What would thy mother say?" Silena stood up, ready to attack Zoe. Beckendorf grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back to her seat. When she kept struggling, he pulled her into his lap and wrapped an arm around her, rendering her immobile. Aw, they would make such a cute couple! Shut up, ADHD!

"Which three Hunters will go?" asked Beckendorf after telling them to stop it.

"I shall go. I will take Bianca and Phoebe. She is our best tracker."

"The big girl who likes to hit people?" asked Travis.

"The one who put those arrows in my helmet?" asked Connor. Zoe nodded. "Give this T-shirt to her, will you?" Zoe rolled her eyes, but took the shirt anyways. "What of your campers, Chiron?" Chiron looked at us.

"I already said I was going," I said. I leant back in my chair and put my feet up on the table. I pulled out Mov and began to clean underneath my nails. I could feel all the eyes on me. Grover offered to go and my brother and cousin offered at the same time. Zoe chose Thalia, something about refusing to travel with a male. I guess satyrs don't count as male.

That night, after dinner, I made a promise that I would keep. "I will search for her, fratellino. I will look for Annabeth. I do not know if I will find her, but I swear on the Styx itself that I'm going to try my best to find her." My brother just smiled sadly and hugged me. I may not like Annabeth very much, but she was one of his best friends.

"Thanks, Nina. Try not to die, will you?"

"I make no promises, Perce."

"You just did."

"Shut up." Percy grinned at me and I turned back to finish packing. This would be my first quest without my brother. I got to say, it kind of scared me. I had done some pretty dangerous stuff at Hogwarts, but this was different. There were no teachers that would come running to my aid if I asked. It was just me and five other kids. I barely even knew three of them! I had trouble falling asleep that night.

The next morning, Zoe woke me up before dawn. I yawned, but grabbed my duffel bag and followed her. We met up with Bianca, Thalia, and Grover on top of Half-Blood Hill. Our guard dragon, Peleus, came up to greet me. He protected the Fleece and would never even dream of harming a camper. He and Blackjack were Percy's familiars. "Where's Phoebe?" I asked.

"That T-shirt was covered with something. Phoebe is now in the infirmary," Zoe said. I tried not to laugh. You can't trust the Stoll brothers with anything unless it's in battle. Zoe glared at me and stalked down to the van. I assumed Argus was going to drive us, but Zoe got into the driver's seat. Oh well. I climbed into the back with Thalia and Grover. Bianca sat up front with Zoe.

Zoe drove like a maniac. Let's just say I'm shocked we weren't pulled over about 500 times just getting into Manhattan. I have never seen someone drive as crazy as Zoe did. She zipped straight through rush hour and made it to New Jersey in less than half an hour! You can't do that when there are absolutely no cars on the road. I was really glad we had seat belts.

I sensed a couple presences following us. One seemed evil, but the other seemed like it meant us no harm. I was still wary of it. Eventually, Zoe stopped the car. Somehow, we made it all the way to Washington D.C. I felt sick and could hardly walk. Zoe hadn't let us eat any breakfast. I was grumpy about it before, but now I was thankful. I think I might have thrown it back up if I had eaten anything. Thalia and I were leaning on each other for support. Grover, Bianca, and Zoe seemed unfazed.

Zoe led us into the Air and Space Museum. Why in the name of Hades are we in here? We pretended to be tourists and looked around. So far, everything had gone well. I didn't even feel sick anymore! Knowing my luck, something was bound to go wrong eventually. I was right. We were on the second floor when I body flew at me and knocked me over.

It was Percy, and he was trying to get us out of here. I wonder why. Oh, that's why. A giant lion jumped into the building. A bunch of tourists screamed and a little boy though it was a kitty. There was only one monster I could think of that would fit the lion's description. The Nemean Lion. Heracles had defeated it by bashing its head. I don't think that was going to work for us. None of us were as strong as Heracles.

Zoe and Bianca began to fire arrows at it. Percy pulled out Riptide, I had Mov in my left hand and my wand in my right. I quickly put my wand away when I realized that spells were just bouncing off of the lion's skin. I had no idea what to do. I remembered coming to this place once with Percy and Sally. Percy had gotten astronaut food and when we tried it, it was absolutely disgusting. "Percy!" I shouted. He looked over at me. "Astronaut food!" He smirked and ran towards the gift shop. Zoe started to yell at him for being a coward. I rolled my eyes at her and continued to keep the claws from slicing me into deli meat.

Percy ran back with an arm full of packets of astronaut food. He threw a whole bunch into the lion's mouth. It roared and tried to spit it back out. To do this, it had to keep its mouth open. Zoe and Bianca began firing at its mouth. They kept missing. Well, here goes nothing. I flung Mov at the nemean lion. It sailed straight at the lion. Mov soared into the monster's mouth and punctured the roof of its mouth. The lion collapsed to the floor and its pelt turned into a skin. I gave it to my brother for his awesome aim and because I'm pretty sure the dehydrated ice cream sandwich killed it. I should give some of those to Malfoy.

We all ran out of the museum and back to the van. A black military helicopter was following us. It was just like the one at Westover Hall. "They know the van," I gasped.

"We have to ditch it," Percy agreed. Bianca led us to a subway saying she remembered seeing it last year. She told us that it hadn't been there when she was growing up. She meant the whole subway system. How long was she in the Lotus Hotel and Casino? We bought tickets and boarded the subway. The plan worked, the helicopter circled the van and didn't follow us.

Eventually, the helicopter began to follow us. We changed trains twice. Thankfully, we lost the helicopter again. Unfortunately, when we finally got off the subway, we were at the end of the line. There was no where else to go. We were in an industrial area. "Y'all need to get warmed up? Come on over!" There was a homeless guy a few yards away from us. He gave us a toothless grin and we gladly joined him by the fire he had started in a trashcan. Don't judge, it was freezing and I don't want to get frostbite! "You know, you're never completely without friends. You kids need a train going west?"

"Yes, sir," my brother said. "You know of any?"

The man pointed to a freight train. It had Sun West Line written on the side. It was shining and completely free of snow. "That's convenient," grumbled Thalia. I turned around to thank the man, but he was gone. The fire was gone too. I shrugged and climbed into one of the cars. The others followed me. Bianca and Zoe crashed in a Lexus and Grover decided to play race car in a Lamborghini. Thalia had managed to hot wire a Mercedes SLK and was listening to some DC rock stations. Percy joined her. I climbed into a Mercedes Benz. I rested back against the driver's seat to try and get some sleep, but I jumped back up when I felt an arm go around my shoulders.

I pulled Mov from its sheath and pointed it in the direction of the person. the blonde teenager held his hands up in surrender. "Apollo, you scared me," I groaned. I put Mov away and flicked the lights on inside the car. "What are you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious? You're in the sun chariot."

"You mean the Mercedes or the whole train?" Apollo gave me a look that said, 'Are you really asking that question?' I smiled sheepishly up at him. "Why are you helping us, 'Pollo?" I asked as I slid over to the passenger seat and onto his lap.

Apollo slid his arms round my waist and pulled me closer to him. "You are going to save my sister, and I really do care about her. I'm not going to just stand by and watch as my twin gets tortured. Oh, and you're on this quest and despite what you have thought in previous years, I really do care a lot about you. I'm going incognito by the way, call me Fred. I'm not really allowed to be helping you guys."

I laughed and smiled up at Apollo. I really did miss him. "Well Fred, thank you for the help, but I really should be getting some sleep."

"Then go to sleep, Sparkles. I'll look after you. Good night."

I curled up into Apollo. He radiated heat. Probably because he's the son god. "Good night," I murmured into his chest as I fell asleep.


	43. Chapter 42: Junkyards and Dams

**Here's the next chapter. Bianca dies. I hate when people die. Hope you like it.**

Chapter Forty Two: Junkyards and Dams

When I woke up, Apollo was gone and the train had stopped moving. I sighed and climbed out of the car. Everyone else was climbing out of there cars as well. We jumped of the train and made our way up to the nearest town, Cloudcroft, New Mexico. There was tons of snow up here. I picked up a snowball and threw it at the back of Zoe's head. It hit its target.

Zoe whipped around and glared at me. I smiled and waved innocently. An evil smile grew on her face. She held a finger to her lips then scooped up her own snowball. She threw it at Percy. He flipped around and glared at me. I shook my head. He turned his glare to Thalia who pointed at Zoe. Zoe just smirked at Percy. He threw a snowball at her. We started an all out snowball war.

The war ended when I tackled my brother and we landed in a huge pile of snow. A laughing Thalia helped pull us out. Percy and I used our magic to remove the water from everyone's cloths. Thank the gods we did that, otherwise Grover would smell like wet goat. Yuck!

We started to walk to the edge of town, but Grover collapsed. I felt a power surge around me and the nature seemed to come to life. The plastic rat Percy bought at a side store in the town turned into a real rat and scurried away. Grover was mumbling something that none of us could understand. Thalia and Percy lifted him up and we continued walking. We had only four days left, we couldn't stop now. Out of nowhere, five skeleton men showed up. They had been tracking us since D.C. Percy said that the General had created them. Now, I just need to find out who the General is.

We fought hard. We just couldn't kill the things. Everytime we knocked a head off, the demon would just pick it up and put it back on. Bianca stabbed one with her hunting knife, and it burst into green flames. That one stayed dead. It didn't work with Zoe's knife, though. They were made of the same metal. Suddenly, I got an idea. I pulled out my wand. "Incendio!" I shouted, pointing my wand at a skeleton man. He burst into flame and fell to the ground.

I didn't have any time to see what happened to him, because just then, a giant hog showed up. We have the worst luck. Grover, who was now awake, ordered us to climb on. At the moment, we would all do anything as long as it would get us away from the skeleton men. When we were all on, the boar to run. It turned out it was the Erymanthian Boar. How wonderful, not. We rode that creature all day. It was ridiculously uncomfortable and I don't recommend it.

We got off in Gila Claw, Arizona. It was the definition of a ghost town. All of the shops were boarded up. There were absolutely no people. The only thing there, was a two lane road straight through the middle of the town. We decided to camp out there. Zoe and Bianca produced six sleeping bags and foam mattresses and Percy and Grover collected some wood from a nearby shop. Thalia zapped it with lightning, she was a Lightning Mage because she was a daughter of Zeus, and it burst into flames. I summoned some hot dogs from my charm and we roasted them over the fire.

Later on, I sat staring at the sky. It was beautiful with all the stars out. There were millions of them since there were no city lights to block them from view. I had never actually seen the Milky Way before and here I was staring up at it. I was amazed.

A bright light flashed a little ways down the road. A sat up with everyone else. It was a car. A pure white limo pulled to a stop in front of us. A man stepped out of the driver's seat. I recognized him instantly. He was Ares. I growled when I saw him. He sneered at me and turned to my brother. He pointed his sword at Percy's throat. "At ease, people. This is a friendly meeting." He snapped his fingers and our weapons dropped to the ground. "Of course I'd love taking your head and your sister's head as a trophy, but someone wants to see you. And I never behead my enemies in front of a lady."

"What lady?" asked Thalia.

Ares glared at her and said, "I doubt she wants to meet the rest of you. Particularly not them." He gestured at the Hunters. "Why don't you all go get some tacos while you wait."

"Okay," I smirked at him. I summoned some tacos from my bracelet. "Want one?" I should have known my sarcasm would get me in trouble. He gripped me around the throat and slammed me into the wall of an out of business general store.

"Watch your tongue, girl. You should be glad I haven't killed you yet," he growled.

"I'd like to see you try," I choked back. "A twelve-year old with two weeks of training beat you in a sword fight." He growled and let me drop to the floor.

"This isn't over, punk." I glared at him. Ares threw my brother into the limo and got back in. I massaged my throat and Grover rushed over to me with some nectar.

When Ares threw Percy out of the limo, a cloud of dust covered everything. After it disappeared, everything was gone. The limo was gone as was Gila Claw. We were in the middle of the junkyard we had seen outside of Gila Claw. "Be careful," Percy warned. "Aphrodite told me not to bring anything out of this place. Now, which way do we go?"

I pointed directly in front of us. "We need to go west. The North Star is on our right. That makes west forwards." Everyone nodded and followed me. Thank the gods we have to take Astronomy classes in Hogwarts. We started our trek across the junkyard of the gods. A lot of the stuff in here was solid gold. We couldn't help but check a few things out.

Finally, we saw the end of the junkyard about a half mile ahead of us. The one problem was there were 10 large, bronze columns blocking our path. They looked like toes. I exchanged a glance with Thalia and Zoe. They recognized them too. "Let's go around. Far around," said Thalia. I was quick to voice my agreement. Percy did not agree. He wanted to climb over them. Eventually, we agreed to walk around it. It was too late.

The ten toes tilted over. The automaton's knees bent. It sat up and used its hands to lift it up until it was standing. I was terrified. We were facing the bronze giant, Talos, or at least a prototype of him. Talos turned to face us. "Who?" I hissed. "Who took something?" One shall be lost in the land without rain. The line of the prophecy rang through my head. One of us was going to die. Talos took his sword out of its sheath. The metal screeching against metal hurt my ears. It felt like they were bleeding. It hurt so badly. The blade was 100 feet long easy.

Talos took a giant step forward, closing half the distance between us. "Run!" Grover shouted. He didn't need to tell me twice. We split up and all ran in different directions around Talos. This seemed to confuse him. I ran with Grover around back and we tried to find weak links in his joints. I saw Percy and Bianca on the other side. Bianca ran forward and Percy tried to stop her. She ran straight under Talos' foot. Bianca disappeared beneath it.

"No!" I don't know who shouted. It might have been me, but I'm not sure. Talos froze and began to twitch. His head began to turn full 360° circles. Bianca had somehow made it into his control system. He completely froze and his head stopped swiveling. With a loud CRASH!, Talos exploded. Debris flew everywhere. I ran forwards, I needed to find Bianca. Grover grabbed my arm and pulled me back. I struggled against him, but he held me back. When all the debris had settled, he finally let me go. I rushed forwards and began digging through the piles of metal.

I searched for hours. After a while, the others joined my search. I knew someone was going to die here. I just didn't want to believe it. As the sun began to lift over the eastern horizon, we gave up. We stumbled to the road. There was an old pickup truck at the edge. It was old and rusty, but it had a full tank of gas. We decided to borrow it. Grover, Percy, and I sat in the bed and Zoe and Thalia sat up front. Thalia was driving us. I leaned against Percy. For some reason, he kept muttering about how Bianca's death was his fault. I was too tired to correct him.

When the truck ran out of gas, Thalia got out and slammed the door shut. Immediately, one of the tires popped. Wonderful, everything is going just great. Grover spotted a path and we followed it up. We found two canoes. I climbed in with Thalia and Zoe and Percy and Grover climbed into another one. Percy asked the naiads to bring us upstream. They were happy to help. They brought us all the way up to the Hoover Dam, then went back downstream, grumbling about stupid dams. I felt kinda bad for them.

We decided to go see the dam when we got out of the water. It was for Annabeth. She had always wanted to come here. "Let us find the dam snack bar," said Zoe.

"The dam snack bar?" asked Grover, cracking a smile. I giggled softly.

"Yes. What is funny?"

"Nothing," Grover said, trying to keep a straight face. "I could use some dam french fries."

Even Thalia started smiling at that. "And I need to use the dam restroom." I think it was because we were all so stressed out, but we all started cracking up, except Zoe. She was still confused.

"I want to use the dam water fountain," I smiled.

"And I want to buy a dam T-shirt," Thalia chuckled. I kept laughing til I heard a moo.

"Did I just hear a cow?" Grover and I asked at the same time. We looked over at Percy. He looked a little ill.

"Fratello, are you feeling okay? You don't look so good."

Percy nodded. "I-I'm fine. I just need a minute to think. Go on ahead." I looked back at my twin one last time before following everyone else inside. We went to the snack bar and I ordered a cheeseburger. When I finished, I got up to throw out my garbage. Normally, I would give it to Grover, but that didn't seem like a good idea in a place full of tourists. Percy burst in. "We need to leave. Now!"

Zoe stood up and muttered an Ancient Greek curse. "He's right look!" All of the skeleton men were accounted for except the one Bianca killed. Turns out incendio does not kill skeleton people, whoops! We ran as fast as we could. Soon, we were surrounded by the things. We were cornered up against two winged angel statues. They were sacred to Zeus. Why did I remember that? Wait, they're sacred to Zeus!

"Thalia, pray to your dad. Ask him for help!" She began to argue about how he never listens. Eventually, I got her to cave. When she opened her eyes, nothing happened. The skeletons were closing in on us. We turned around so we could defend ourselves. Two great shadows loomed over us. A giant bronze arm swept the skeletons out of the way. I looked up to see the two bronze statues were moving.

The angels looked down at us. They asked Thalia if she was the daughter of Zeus and she said yes. They picked us up and began to fly. Thalia and I were squeezed together in the same hand. She clung to me as the angels took off. This can not be good for her fear of heights.

The statues names were Hank and Chuck. I didn't know statues had names. They were flying us to San Francisco. Along the way, they told stories about their times spent in Frisco. I was shocked that they had been to Frisco before. Who would have guessed?


	44. Chapter 43: Mt Othrys and Olympus

**Here's another long chapter. It's the end of Titan's Curse. I'm going to continue with PoA tomorrow. Thank you to my two reviewers. I used your song at the end sassiecassie218. Nina doesn't sing it, but it still fits in nicely. There are two songs in this chapter. Enjoy the chappie!**

Chapter Forty Three: Mt. Othrys and Olympus

The statues put us down by the Embarcadero Bridge. Thalia looked ready to be sick. A homeless guy ran away yelling something about metal angels from Mars. Talk about insane people, Hank and Chuck are obviously from Mercury. Duh! "Apollo told me to find Nereus," Percy said. "The old man of the sea."

Zoe nodded. "All we have to do is follow the smell." She led us to the waterfront, then had me get dressed like a hobo. She had me put on a large, navy blue flannel shirt, jeans that were a good three sizes too big for me, and red sneakers. Thalia messed up my hair so it looked like I had been sleeping on the streets. The fact that I had been sleeping on the streets really helped. Why couldn't Percy do this?

I walked over to the docks grumbling about stupid parents and stupid school. At the end of the docks, an old, fat man in pajamas and a bathrobe was sleeping. He smelled like brine and hot seaweed. This had to be Nereus. I sat down next to him. When no one was looking, I tackled him into the ocean. He felt really slimey. He turned into a seal and went straight down. If I wasn't the daughter of Poseidon, I never would have been able to hang on.

Nereus shifted his form again. This time, he was a killer whale. He jumped out of the water just after I grabbed his dorsal fin. I managed to wave to the tourists as we plunged back underneath the waves. He changed into an eel and I tied him into a knot.

Nereus quickly changed back and flashed us up to the pier. "How did you manage to hold on?"

"I am the daughter of Poseidon."

He glared, "What is your question?"

I could only ask one question. I needed to find out where Annabeth was for Percy. On the other hand, I needed to find out where Artemis was for Zoe, Apollo, and me. I also needed to find out what the bane of Olympus was. "Alright, Nereus. Tell me where to find the monster that Artemis was hunting."

Nereus cackled, "Oh, that's an easy one. He's right there." Nereus pointed into the water and disappeared. I looked down and saw a creature with the front half of a cow and the tail of a serpent. I remember him from myths I read a few years back. It was the Ophiotaurus.

"Bessie," Percy exclaimed. "Not now." The Ophiotaurus mooed and I couldn't stop my laugh. I can't believe Percy named the most powerful creature in all of Greacen history Bessie. It was just too ridiculous. Thalia, Zoe, and Grover recognized him too. We all had to explain to Percy about the Ophiotaurus.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. I froze and turned around. Why do the monsters always hold me hostage? Dr. Thorn was gripping my shoulder tightly. I could feel my bones shatter. I have the worst luck. "This is just pairrr-fect," gloated the manticore. His accent really mangled his speech. "You, Daughter of Zeus, shall unleash the power of the manticore, or, you shall watch your friend die." Oh, gods, how do I get myself into these hostage situations? I couldn't believe they were forcing Thalia to either destroy the Olympians or destroy me. I'm going to die!

Thalia went into a daze as the manticore began to list reasons that she should kill the Ophiotaurus. I had a brilliant idea. These shoes were two sizes too big on me. I kicked my right foot towards Thalia and the shoe went flying off. It hit her in the face. She fell backwards onto the pavement. Yes, it worked!

Grover told Bessie to dive deep and stay there. Thankfully, she got the message. Zoe shot a fart arrow at Thorn's feet and he let go of me to cover his mouth. I grabbed Thalia's hand with my good arm and started dragging her after Percy, Zoe, and Grover. We hid behind a kiosk. Grover made a rainbow and we contacted camp. We told Mr. D. about the Ophiotaurus. He was reluctant to help unless we said please. That was something I refused to do. I looked at Thalia as the rest got ready to fight. A tear fell down her face. This had happened to her before, on top of Half-Blood Hill, except she wouldn't be able to save us this time. I turned to Mr. D., "Please, Mr D., help us." He smirked and cut off the connection. I turned and pulled out Mov. There were mortal guards surrounding us. Nothing happened.

I looked at my friends one last time. Thalia had Aegis out, more tears were leaking from her eyes. Grover had his pipes to his lips. His eyes were wide with fear. Zoe had an arrow pointing at Dr. Thorn. Her face held no emotion, but her eyes revealed how scared she was. I looked at my brother last. He had Riptide raised in one hand and the other was held in a fist. His eyes held a ferocity I had never known him capable. He was ready to defend us to his last breath.

The wind rushed around us. The sunlight had a purple tinge to us. I smelled grapes in the air and something more sour-wine. There was a loud SNAP! It was the sound of many minds breaking. The guards began to go insane. They started doing the funky chicken and the worm. One stuck his gun in his mouth and began to run around barking like a dog.

"Grover, you take the Ophiotaurus to Olympus. You will be safe in the water. Percy and I will pray to Dad. Percy, we're going to need a big sacrifice." Percy pulled off his coat of Nemean Lion fur. "Are you sure, fratello? That could be very useful." Percy nodded and threw the coat into the bay. We began to pray out loud together.

"Percy, why did you do that?" asked Thalia. "Heracles use it. Do you have any idea how helpful that could have been?" I looked at Zoe as something flashed through her eyes. We were running to Annabeth's dad's house. We really needed to borrow his car. Dionysus said Artemis was in the Garden of the Hesperides. That was on Mount Othrys and like the rest of the Ancient Greek world, it had moved west. It was now on Mount Tamalpais. I remembered a story Zoe had told me when I was 10 about Heracles. There had been a Hesperid who helped him trick Atlas. Zoe was that Hesperid. I realized Zoe must have told that to Percy as well. He didn't want to be Heracles, not after he betrayed Zoe like that.

We made it to the Chase residence and Thalia began to bang on the door. A man who looked a little like Annabeth opened the door. His shirt was buttoned wrong so one side of his collar stuck up higher than the was wearing an aviator's hat and goggles. He looked kinda crazy. "Are you delivering the airplanes?"he asked.

"No, we're friends of Annabeth's. She's in trouble," Percy said. Dr. Chase's forehead crinkled. He looked really worried. I have no idea why Annabeth said her dad didn't like her. He was 9 times as worried as my mother had ever been about me. Dr. Chase led us up to his study where Mrs. Chase brought us cookies. When Percy finished the story, I noticed Annabeth's younger half brothers standing at the door. The younger one, who looked to be about three, looked ready to cry.

"I'll get them, Dr. Chase. You and the rest can figure something out," I whispered. He nodded as his eyes betrayed him getting even more worried about his daughter. I picked up the youngest in my good arm and led the other one downstairs. When we got downstairs, I sat down on the couch and lifted one up on either side of me. "Hi, my name's Nina. What's yours?"

"I'm Bobby," the older one said.

"I'm Matthew," sniffled the youngest. "Is Annabeth going to be okay?"

"Yeah, she's going to be fine. We're going to go rescue her. She's brave, she'll be fine." Both boys seemed to be content with that answer and curled into me.

"Can you sing us a song?" asked Bobby. "Annabeth always used to sing to us. Bobby looked to be about 9.

"What do you want me to sing?" Both boys shrugged. I thought, I couldn't play with my arm all messed up, but I didn't mind singing acapella.

You would not believe your eyes

If ten million fireflies

Lit up the world as I fell asleep

'Cause they'd fill the open air

And leave teardrops everywhere

You'd think me rude

But I would just stand and stare

I'd like to make myself believe

That planet Earth turns slowly

It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep

'Cause everything is never as it seems

'Cause I'd get a thousand hugs

From ten thousand lightning bugs

As they tried to teach me how to dance

A foxtrot above my head

A sock hop beneath my bed

The disco ball is just hanging by a thread

(Thread, thread...)

I'd like to make myself believe

That planet Earth turns slowly

It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep

'Cause everything is never as it seems

(When I fall asleep)

Leave my door open just a crack

(Please take me away from here)

'Cause I feel like such an insomniac

(Please take me away from here)

Why do I tire of counting sheep?

(Please take me away from here)

When I'm far too tired to fall asleep

(Ha-ha)

To ten million fireflies

I'm weird 'cause I hate goodbyes

I got misty eyes as they said farewell

(Said farewell)

But I'll know where several are

If my dreams get real bizarre

'Cause I saved a few and I keep them in a jar

(Jar, jar, jar...)

_[2x]_

I'd like to make myself believe

That planet Earth turns slowly

It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep

'Cause everything is never as it seems

(When I fall asleep)

I'd like to make myself believe

That planet Earth turns slowly

It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep

Because my dreams are bursting at the seams

As I finished singing, Percy, Thalia, and Zoe ran down the stairs, followed by Dr. Chase. I jumped up and waved good bye to the little boys. We ran outside the house and into Dr. Chase's VW convertible. I jumped in the back with Percy and we raced towards Mt. Tam. When we got there, the sun was just beginning to set.

Zoe pulled us up the mountain and instructed us to go around Ladon, the 100 headed dragon, while she went straight towards him. She whispered to the dragon as we snuck around him. He lashed out and bit Zoe's side. She ran fast towards us. We ran the rest of the way up the mountain and hid behind a rock when we arrived at the Titan's fortress. It was half built and seemed to be constructing itself. Zoe was clutching her side where she had been bitten. I looked in her eyes, and both of us knew she would not make it to see the end of this quest.

I saw Artemis tied up and holding up the sky where the titan, Atlas, used to. I rushed forward with Zoe to aid her. Artemis tried to warn us to go back, but it was too late. A man stepped out of the shadows followed by some monsters who kept addressing him as General. This man was the tallest man I had ever seen. I recognized him after a few moments. This was Atlas, titan of astronomy and navigation. He was the general of Kronos' armies in the first Titanomachy. I gasped, this was Zoe's father. He would deliver the killing blow. My mind flashed into the future. I had taken Artemis' burden with my brother. We both had a grey streak running through our hair. Mine was more silvery. I watched as Zoe and Artemis battled Atlas. He swung his giant hand at Zoe and she was flung into a boulder. I came back to the present in a flash of light.

"Percy!" I shouted over the din. "We need to take Artemis' burden. She must fight!" Percy nodded and we ran over to where the sky pushed to touch the earth. Percy and I braced ourselves on either side of the moon goddess.

"Are you sure?" she asked. I nodded my head, fierce determination in my eyes. Artemis slipped out from under the sky. For a moment, it rested on all three of our shoulders. It was the heaviest thing I had ever lifted. Sharp pain was shooting up and down my broken shoulder. I could feel my strength being sucked out of my body. It hurt so much. Luke came out pulling an unconscious Annabeth behind him. Thalia engaged him in contact. I watched as my vision replayed itself. Zoe Nightshade was officially dying.

Artemis fell to the ground. I screamed as Atlas brought his javelin down on my friend. At the last second, she grabbed the javelin and flipped it over her head. Atlas came hurtling toward us. Just in time, Percy and I leapt out of the way. The sky crashed down on Atlas' back and he roared with anger. I landed on my injured shoulder and screamed again. My vision was fuzzy from the pain in my shoulder and the pain of having to hold up the sky. It had been like holding up 1 billion pounds! I began to have double vision and the last thing I saw before blacking out was my brother running towards me.

I woke up to find my shoulder bandaged and Artemis was holding Zoe in her arms. I crawled over them in time to hear Zoe say, "Stars. I can see the stars again, my lady."

A tear escaped Artemis' eye. "Yes, my brave one. They are beautiful tonight."

"Stars," repeated Zoe before she stilled. Tears began to trail down Artemis' cheeks. She held her hand over Zoe and whispered an incantation. A silvery mist escaped Zoe and flew up into the night sky. Zoe's body shimmered before disappearing. I looked up to see a new constellation in the sky.

"The Huntress," I whispered. "May she watch over all young maidens." Artemis nodded her head in agreement. She stood up and got into a silver chariot. I guess that's the moon chariot.

"I shall see you all on Olympus," she said before flying off into the sky. Annabeth hugged her dad. When had he gotten here? He gave her a brave smile and climbed into an old helicopter. Wait what? I stared at the plane as it flew off. Weird...

I heard a WHOOSH! behind me. I turned and saw four pegasi gliding toward us. The silver one landed in front of me. She nuzzled my bandage shoulder. _You really need to stop injuring yourself, Nina._

I laughed. _Hello to you too, Silvermist. You guys come to give us a ride to Olympus?_

Yes! another horse shouted in my head. I smiled at him. His name was Guido. I pulled myself up on to Sil's back as Percy got up on Blackjack, Thalia climbed onto Porkpie, and Annabeth climbed on to Guido. During the whole ride to Olympus, I told Sil all about our quest. Thalia was so tired, she managed to fall asleep on Porkpie. The pegasus had to keep shifting so she wouldn't tumble off.

When we got to Olympus, we all rushed into the throne room. Apollo grinned at me and pointed us out to Zeus who had been talking to Grover. Apollo seemed very relieved that I was alive. "Welcome heroes," smiled Artemis. The Ophiotaurus said Moooo!

Zeus was staring intently at Thalia and waved to Grover, signaling he could come up and hug us. He winced slightly when he hit my shoulder. I didn't think anyone noticed until I saw Apollo looking me with concern in his eyes. I smiled to show I was fine, but he didn't seem to believe that. Oh yeah, he's the god of truth. He will always know when I'm lying. Apollo leaned back in his thrown. He had earbuds in and I doubted he had been listening to his father's rambling. 'What you listening too?' I mouthed to him.

'Maroon 5,' he mouthed back. That was one of my favorite bands. I liked a variety of music. "I gotta say," Apollo said aloud, "these kids did okay."

"First class," Hermes agreed. "All in favor of not blasting them?"

A few tentative hands were put up by Aphrodite and Demeter. Artemis, Hermes, Apollo, my dad, and Hades (who was sitting on a guest throne since it was the winter solstice) all shot their hands up. "Wait just a minute," growled Ares. He looked at Thalia, Percy and me. "These three are dangerous. It'd be much safer, while we've got them here-"

"Ares, they are worthy heroes," interrupted Dad. I gave him a thankful smile. "We will not blast my twins to bits."

"Nor my daughter," grumbled Zeus. He didn't seem to care though. "She has done well." At the end I caught his lips curving up into a minute smile.

"I am proud of my daughter as well," began Athena. "But there is a security risk with the other three."

Apollo jumped from his throne. "We're not blowing up Nina," he growled. "Or the others," he added as an afterthought while sitting down. I blushed and smiled at him. All of the Olympians stared at me.

Athena continued. "Ignore Apollo, of course he will stand up for the first daughter of Poseidon. It is not even like he cares for her."

Athena was interrupted by Apollo again. "How dare you," he snarled. I had never been scared by him, but his tone terrified me. I had no idea how Athena was able to hold her ground. "How dare you suggest I do not care for Nina. I would go to the deepest pits of Tartarus and give up my immortal life for her. Keep your nose out of business that is not your own." Apollo glared at her one more time before stalking off to his seat. I was so touched by what he said. No one had ever been willing to defend me to that degree. I kept my eyes trained on the floor. I didn't need Apollo to see how much I was blushing.

Athena scowled at Apollo. "We cannot allow these three children to live." I could see the fury growing in Apollo's eyes. I had never seen him this mad and never wanted to see him like this again.

"I will not have them punished," Artemis sneered at her half sister. "I will reward them. If we punish heroes who do us a great favor, we are no better than the titans. If this is Olympian justice, I will have none of it!"

"Perhaps," Zeus agreed.

"Thalia, I have need of a new lieutenant. Would you like to fill this position?" Thalia nodded eagerly and said an oath to Artemis. She would now never reach the age in the prophecy, lucky. Artemis snapped her fingers and Thalia was suddenly dressed in the outfit of the Hunters. A silver circlet sat upon her short, spiky hair. She seemed to radiate life.

"The twins are still a danger," warned Ares. Apollo turned his glare on the war god. Ares cowered back slightly. Apollo is a pretty relaxed god. I have never seen him angry until now. He once told me he would do anything for his loved ones. I didn't want to see how he would protect them. It was probably very scary if even the war god was frightened.

Poseidon stepped forward. "The twins will not betray us. I would vouch for this on my honor."

"All in favor of keeping the children of Poseidon alive?" asked Zeus lazily. Apollo's hand was the first in the air. He was followed by Artemis, Poseidon, and Hades. Slowly, all the gods except Zeus, Athena, and Ares raised their hands. "Majority wins." I almost started jumping up and down in excitement. I wasn't going to die, yet. During the rest of the meeting, it was agreed upon that Poseidon would create an aquarium for the Ophiotaurus on Olympus. Zeus decided we needed a party.

Aphrodite was the first to reach me and my friends. Apollo was standing off to the side talking to Hermes. Aphrodite squealed and snapped her fingers. We were suddenly all in party clothes. Thalia kept the Hunters' outfit though. Percy was in a white button down shirt and some jeans. Annabeth had a sort grey dress on. They wandered off together. I looked down to see I was in the same outfit I wore to Westover. I looked up at Aphrodite curiously. She winked at me and said, "Apollo told me how amazing you looked in that dress last Saturday. He was right." I felt my blush deepen. I didn't think that was possible. Aphrodite laughed and pushed me towards Apollo.

I straightened out my skirt and walked up to him. "Hi," I whispered softly. He looked up from his phone and grinned at me. He placed his phone in his back pocket and wrapped an arm around me, pulling me up against him. He was in his 15-year old form. At least he was only two years older than me.

Apollo looked at my shoulder where the bandages were and frowned. "You need to stop getting hurt, Sparkles."

"That's what my pegasus said," I grimaced as he began to remove the bandages. "What are you doing?"

"Healing you." By now, all the bandages were off. He placed his hand over my shoulder and I winced. He gave me an apologetic smile before closing his eyes and concentrating. His hand glowed golden and I could feel the bones mending themselves. "There, all better," he exclaimed when he was done. "C'mon, let's dance." He dragged me out onto the dance floor as a song by David Guetta came on.

"I love this song!" I shouted over the noise that kept getting louder as we made our way onto the dance floor.

I can't win, I can't reign

I will never win this game

Without you, without you

I am lost, I am vain,

I will never be the same

Without you, without you

I won't run, I won't fly

I will never make it by

Without you, without you

I can't rest, I can't fight

All I need is you and I,

Without you, without you

Oh oh oh!

You! You! You!

Without...

You! You! You!

Without...you

Can't erase, so I'll take blame

But I can't accept that we're estranged

Without you, without you

I can't quit now, this can't be right

I can't take one more sleepless night

Without you, without you

I won't soar, I won't climb

If you're not here, I'm paralyzed

Without you, without you

I can't look, I'm so blind

I lost my heart, I lost my mind

Without you, without you

Oh oh oh!

You! You! You!

Without...

You! You! You!

Without...you

I am lost, I am vain,

I will never be the same

Without you, without you

Without...you

Apollo and I danced until it felt like my feet were about to fall off. I was really glad Aphrodite had given me my flats and not heels. Apollo led me t the garden outside his temple. It was beautiful. All of the flowers were different colors. He led me to a bench and we sat down next to each other. I curled into his side and told him about Hogwarts. He always was a really good listener. I'm glad we're not fighting anymore. I fell asleep curled up into the god I was slowly falling in love with.


	45. Chapter 44: Siri's Innocent

**Sorry about the delay in updating I've been really busy these past few days. I definitely won't be able to update over the weekend and most likely not on Friday or Monday because I have some family coming down that I haven't seen in forever. Nina saves Moony at the end of the chapter. I need your guys' opinions. Should I send Nina into the labyrinth during the first part of the quest or when Rachel joins or not at all? The reason I'm asking is because Annabeth doesn't like her. Review and tell me what you think! Enjoy.**

Chapter Forty Four: Siri's Innocent

When I got back to Hogwarts, Lav and Vati swarmed me. "I need some help, guys. I have some new pictures to put up on my headboard and I want to put the rest of my old ones back up."

"You mean the ones with Apollo?" asked Lav. "You two finally made up?"  
I nodded, grinning, and dragged them up to our dorm. I pulled the old pictures out of my trunk and the new ones out of my knapsack. As we hung the pictures, I informed my two friends about the quest. Vati pulled the chunk of hair that was silver out of my ponytail. "It looks cool." I laughed and picked up a picture of Apollo and me in his garden on Olympus. We were lying down in the grass and pointing out all the constellations.

"Aw! How cute," Lavender squealed over my shoulder.

"You know, I met your mom on Olympus. You guys sound a lot like her."

"We're going to take that as a compliment," both girls said together.

I smiled at my friends. We grabbed our DADA books when we were finished and ran to Professor Lupin's class. WHen we got there, Professor Lupin smiled at us. "You're looking very happy, Christina."

"Something amazing happened over Christmas," I sighed as I sunk into my chair. I hadn't been able to stop grinning since the winter solstice. I was so happy, even if there was the Great Prophecy looming over me. Lavender and Parvati started giggling insanely. Professor Lupin raised an eyebrow, but continued on with the lesson. Everyone kept casting curious glances at me, but I kept my head in my book.

My next few months at Hogwarts flew by. Harry wouldn't shut up about the new Firebolt he had been sent anonymously. Ron wouldn't stop complaining about how Hermione had told Professor McGonagall about it. McGonagall had confiscated it to have it checked for curses. Hey, you never know. It may have been sent by a death eater. Ron was refusing to talk to Hermione as well because apparently her cat ate his rat. I wouldn't talk to Ron because he was being such an idiot.

Lav and Vati told me how they had visited Sirius during a Hogsmeade day during the holiday. He told them about Peter Pettigrew being an illegal rat animagus. Peter Pettigrew was in actuality Scabbers. I never liked that rat! How dare he frame my family for his crimes.I was glad Crookshanks ate him.

A few weeks later, there was a quidditch match. Harry had finally got his Firebolt back just in time. Thank the gods, he finally shut up about it. Ron was still refusing to talk to Hermione. I was getting sick of his attitude. He was really being obnoxious. Gryffindor won the match against Ravenclaw. At the end of the match, three dementors showed up on the field. I could tell something was wrong. I didn't feel the cold or the despair that I associated with dementors. Harry cast a charm and a silver stag erupted from his wand.

The stag cantered down to the dementors and knocked them over with its horns. It disappeared. Under the dementor robes, were human feet. McGonagall rushed down and pulled them up. It was Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. Why those little...

After the match, we had party. I went down with Fred and George to the kitchens. We got a lot of candy and when Fred and George weren't looking, I summoned a lot of American party foods from my bracelet. When Angelina asked where we got the food, Fred shrugged and whispered something in Harry's ear. Harry started laughing. I wonder what he said.

The Gryffindor party went on until 1 in the morning. At that time, Professor McGonagall came in and yelled at us to go to bed. I went straight to bed along with Lav and Vati. Hermione was already in bed. I fell asleep almost instantly.

About an hour later, I was woken up by a scream. It had come from a little ways off. Lav, Vati, Hermione, and I jumped out of our beds and rushed to the common room where a crowd of people were already gathering. Dean and Harry led a shaking Ron down from the boys dormitories. They were followed by Seamus and Neville. I wonder what happened. Percy came running down telling us all to go back to bed. He took one look at Ron and he instantly shut up.

"Perce-Sirius Black! In our dormitory! Pulled a knife on me! Woke me up!"

"Nonsense! You had too much to eat, Ron-had a nightmare-"

"I'm telling you-"

"Now, really, enough is enough!" McGonagall had come back into the room. "I am delighted that Gryffindor won the match, but this is getting ridiculous! Percy, I expected better of you!"

"I certainly didn't authorize this, Professor! I was just telling them all to get back to bed! My brother Ron here has had a nightmare-"

"IT WASN'T A NIGHTMARE! PROFESSOR, I WOKE UP, AND SIRIUS BLACK WAS STANDING OVER ME, HOLDING A KNIFE!"

"Don't be ridiculous, Weasley, how could Sirius Black possibly have gotten through the portrait hole?"

Ron was about to say something when I cut in. "Ron, what did the knife look like?"

"Why would you need to know that, Miss Jackson?"

"Because, it's important. The knife that is in the wall next to the portrait hole, well, if you tried to stab someone without any immortal blood in them with it, it would go right through them as if it were made of mist. It's celestial bronze. It is used by demigods because it is the only thing that can harm monsters from the ancient worlds."

"Are you suggesting Sirius Black is a demigod?"

"A son of Hermes to be exact."

Everyone stared at me like I had just sprouted wings. That would be so cool! "The knife was bronze. It looked like it was glowing," Ron answered.

"Yup, that was celestial bronze. Either Sirius Black thinks you're a son of some god or goddess, he got the wrong bed, or he wasn't trying to kill anyone." Lav and Vat nodded their agreement.

"And how, Miss Jackson, are you able to recognize celestial bronze without seeing it?" asked Professor McGonagall.

"Easy," I pulled Mov from the sheath on my hip. "There are a lot of old world monsters around where I live. Everyone has to carry celestial bronze weapons around or else we get killed." Everyone except Lav, Vati, Fred , and George backed away from me. Lav and Vati were used to it, and Fred and George seemed to think it was awesome.

McGonagall looked at me for a few more seconds before walking outside to ask Sir Cadogan if he had let Sirius Black in. "I certainly did, good lady!" cried the crazed knight.

"You-you did? But-but the password!"

"He had 'em! Had the whole week's, my lady! Read 'em off a little piece of paper!"

Professor McGonagall stormed back into the common room. Her face was whiter than Uncle Hades', and that was saying something. "Which person, which abysmally foolish person wrote down this weeks passwords and left them lying around?" Neville slowly raised his hand.

We stayed up all night waiting to hear if Siri had been caught. A few people had come up to me and asked about the monsters that lived in America to distract themselves. Fred had decided to take the knife and slid it across the palm of his hand. He started to bleed. I was curious about this so beckoned Hermione over. She held out her arm and allowed me to stab it. The blade passed right through her arm. People became interested and swarmed around us. They all took the knife and slid it across their palms. George was the only other person who bled. "Well, congratulations you two, you have the blood of immortals in you. I wonder why Ron and Percy didn't bleed," I said to the now slightly excited crowd.

Fred and George were about to heal their palms with magic when I grabbed their hands to stop them. "Don't, wounds made with celestial bronze react badly with magic. Trust me, I've seen a demigod try. Her whole arm caught on fire." I was referring to Vati. She had gotten a deep cut while training and just whipped out her wand instead of using ambrosia and nectar.

Vati handed some ambrosia to the twins. "Here, this will heal it and you won't catch fire. Although, it would be amusing." The whole common room laughed. They continued to distract themselves by asking me more questions about the different monsters. I smiled and leaned back against the couch. I began to tell them about the dracaena I ran into in a back alley in Manhattan. They were very amused by the snake legs.

It was dawn when McGonagall came back. She told us how Siri had escaped again. I did a mental happy dance. That night, I didn't get any more sleep and had told all my monster stories to all of Gryffindor House. I toned the gruesome parts down for the first years. I hadn't intended on telling anyone about that, but it was my only option.

Tighter security was around the school. The doors had been charmed by Flitwick to not allow Sirius into the school. Filch had boarded up all the cracks and mouse holes. Too bad Sirius knows all the secret passages. The Fat Lady was brought back up to the portrait hole, and she had trolls guarding her day in and day out. No one was allowed to tell Neville the password and he had to wait for someone to let him into the common room. I felt really bad for Neville. It's not like it's his fault that Sirius found the parchment. Speaking of finding the parchment, the teachers do realize he would have had to break into the school again to find the parchment so it is as much their fault as it is Neville's.

I had never seem Ron happier. There was officially more attention on him than Harry. Everyone was stopping to ask him about what happened. I rolled my eyes, his story got more and more unrealistic every time he told it. He kept making himself seem more heroic. It went from him screaming to him punching poor Siri in the nose. He made Sirius sound like a total wimp. Sirius could have taken Ron with his eyes closed and both hands tied behind his back. The six-year-old daughter of Ares could take Ron if she had done the same thing to herself.

The teachers were all baffled when McGonagall told them about Sirius having a celestial bronze knife instead of a normal one. They were all almost positive that Harry had no immortal blood in him and they were pretty sure Siri was out to get Harry. I knew the reason Siri had a celestial bronze knife was because it worked on animagi when they were in their animal form. He had been out for Pettigrew. Lupin confronted me after class a few days after the incident. "What do you know about Sirius Black, Nina. He's dangerous and I know you know something. He needs to be turned in and any information may help us capture him."

"I know he's a son of Hermes."

"Yes, yes, I knew that. I sensed it when I first met. That is probably helping him sneak into the castle."

"I know he didn't commit the crimes he was convicted of. I know he was never given a trial. I know that there was a witness willing to stand up for him in court who begged for a trial. I also know he's an illegal animagus."

"What do you mean he's innocent? So many people saw him murder 12 muggles and Peter Pettigrew."

"Chiron, the immortal-"

"I know who Chiron is. I've met him before when Black brought me to Camp."

"Well, Chiron was there that day and he swore on the Styx that Sirius didn't fire a single curse. Pettigrew blasted the street killing all those muggles. Pettigrew then cut off his finger, transformed into a rat, and scampered off to the sewers with the rest of the rats. Hermes visited Siri in his dreams and told him that Pettigrew was at Hogwarts along with Harry and me. Siri wanted to protect his godson and me because we're family. He transformed into a dog and snuck out through the bars in the cell."

Professor Lupin sunk into the sea behind his desk. He placed his head in his hands. "What about the Potter's? Sirius was their Secret Keeper."

"No, Pettigrew was. That's why Siri went after him. Dumbledore thought it was too obvious that Sirius was their Secret Keeper because he and James Potter were like brothers, although Mr. Potter never knew about Siri being a demigod."

"No, I was the only marauder who knew. Wait, Dumbledore knew they switched?" I nodded, scowling. The headmaster really got on my nerves. He was so manipulative. A deep growl emanated from Professor Lupin's throat. When he looked up, his eyes were no longer green. They were now an amber color. Anger flashed through his eyes. His wolf was surfacing.

"P-professor Lupin?" I asked cautiously. He blinked and when his eyes reopened, they were green again.

"Go to class, Nina." I nodded and ran from the room. I had not expected Professor Lupin to become so angry. I knew he went to school with Siri, but I didn't think they knew each other well. Obviously, I had been wrong. I would feel sorry for the headmaster if he hadn't left Sirius to rot in prison.

The next day, Harry gave me a letter that Hermione had been sent from Hagrid. There were dried tear tracks all over it. I read through it quickly. My own tears began to join the old ones. I am going to kill Malfoy. I knew Buckbeak was getting a trial because he had hurt Malfoy. Apparently, wild creatures aren't allowed to act naturally and defend themselves anymore. Malfoy's father had complained to the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Buckbeak had lost his trial and would be put to death. I bet the only reason he lost is because Lucius Malfoy bribes the ministry. The British wizarding government is so corrupted. Hagrid had warned Malfoy not to antagonize Buckbeak and the spoiled monello had done just that. It was entirely Malfoy's fault.

The day they came to execute Buckbeak, I went down to Hagrid's with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. We were under Harry's invisibility cloak. When we got down to Hagrid's pumpkin patch, I saw Buckbeak tied up. I slipped out from under the cloak and went to say goodbye to him. The others went inside. I hugged Buckbeak around his thick neck and buried my face face in the feathers there. He nuzzled me with his beak. Goodbye, my lady.

Goodbye, Buckbeak. I am sorry this had to happen to you. I tried to help you, I really did.

I know, my lady. And for that I am truly grateful. I shall face this injustice bravely, though.

I let a few tears fall as I pulled away. I was so mad that people would hurt an innocent creature, especially one from my father's domain. I wanted to shoot the idiot minister and executioner. I waved to Buckbeak and walked into Hagrid's hut. Ron was holding something, Scabbers! That little rat. I remembered I had seen the minister starting his walk down. "Guys, we need to go, the minister, executioner, and Professor Dumbledore are on their way." I wiped the last of my tears away as I slipped back under the invisibility cloak with the others. We snuck out the back door as the three adults walked in the front. We carefully walked up the hill back to Hogwarts.

When we reached the top, we took off the invisibility cloak and turned around. The sun was beginning to set. I saw everyone who was in the hut walk outside and climb into the pumpkin patch. I saw the executioner raise his ax. I turned my head into Harry's chest. I couldn't watch them slay the innocent creature. Harry rubbed soothing circles into my back. When Hagrid howled, I knew the deed had been done. I started shaking as tears streamed from my eyes. I can't believe they actually did it. I looked up as Scabbers began to squirm in Ron's grasp.

The rat was just about to make an escape. It jumped onto me. I tried to rip him off, but he wouldn't let go. A giant black dog jumped over Harry and the human-turned-rat clung to me tighter, digging his little claws deep into my leg. The dog I recognized as Sirius sunk his teeth into my jacket and started pulling me. I fell to the ground and Siri dragged me along towards the whomping willow. He dragged me through a tunnel and into a very dusty room. When we got into the room, he let me go and nodded his head like he wanted me to follow him. He ran up some stairs and I bolted after him.

When we got into a room on the second floor, he transformed back into a human. "Hope you didn't like that jacket," he grinned sheepishly. I laughed and shook my head. I grabbed Scabbers from my leg and frowned. He had made me bleed. I summoned some nectar from my bracelet and put it on the wound. Who knows what kinds of germs that rat carries. We heard footsteps thundering up the stairs and Sirius hid behind the door incase it was a professor.

It wasn't. Harry, Ron, and Hermione burst into the room. They ran over to me to ensure that I was okay. Ron grabbed Scabbers and plopped down next to me. Sirius closed the door. The Golden trio jumped and looked at him. He was being so ominous. Harry pulled out his wand and pointed it at Sirius. "Expelliarmus!" I shouted. Harry's wand flew into my hand. I jumped between the trio and Sirius as Harry raised a fist to punch Siri. "No, don't hurt him!" Sirius tried to shove me out of the way but I refused to move an inch. "He's innocent. Please, just hear him out!"

"You traitor," snarled Ron. "I suppose it was you who helped him in. What, were Lavender and Parvati your little accomplices?"

"Nina, move! I don't want you to get hurt." Sirius tried to move me again but I refused.

"Sirius didn't need my help getting into the castle. And, if I betrayed you, Harry, I would have killed you already. I easily could have snuck up into the boys dorms to kill you, but I didn't. I'm on your side, but please! Just let Sirius talk!" Siri never got the chance to talk. A crash signaled someone entering the house.

"WE'RE UP HERE! WE'RE UP HERE-SIRIUS BLACK-QUICK!" Hermione shouted. I scowled at her. The footsteps were thundering towards us. The door burst open and Professor Lupin burst into the room.

"Expelliarmus!" he roared. Hermione's and Ron's wands flew from their hands. I smiled, someone who can help us. "Where is he, Sirius?" Siri pointed at Ron, who was clutching a struggling, traitorous rat. "But then, why hasn't he shown himself before now? No one knew you switched except Dumbledore."

"Professor, what's going on?" Harry interrupted loudly. I sighed and wrapped my arms around my cousin. This was going to be a while. Professor Lupin walked up to Siri and me and the two men embraced like brothers.

"I DON'T BELIEVE IT!" Hermione screeched. I covered my ears with my hands. Her voice hurt my ears. Sirius scowled at Hermione and she flinched. He pulled me behind him just in case something bad happened. "You-you-"

"Hermione-" Professor Lupin pleaded.

"-you and him!"

"Hermione, calm down-"

"I didn't tell anyone! I've been covering up for you-"

"Hermione, please I can explain-"

"I trusted you," Harry screamed at Lupin, "and all this time you've been his friend!"

"You're wrong. I haven't been Sirius' friend, but I am now-Let me explain..."

"NO!" screeched Hermione. Gods, she sounds like a banshee. "Harry, don't trust him, he's been helping Black get into the castle, he wants you dead too-he's a werewolf!" That was low, and I know low. I had grown up with Gabe, the lowest of the low.

"Not up to your usual standard, Hermione," Lupin said.. "Only one out of three, I'm afraid. I have not been helping Sirius into the castle and I most certainly do not want Harry dead...but I do not deny that I am a werewolf." Ron tried to stand, his leg had been broken by the whomping willow. He grimaced in pain and flopped back down on the bed. The professor made forward to help him.

"Get away from me werewolf!" Ron sneered in a way that would make Sev proud. Professor Lupin stopped in his tracks.

He turned to Hermione. "How long have you known?"

"Since I did Professor Snape's essay he gave us in the beginning of the year."

"He'll be delighted. He assigned that essay hoping someone would realize what my symptoms meant...Did you check the lunar chart and realize I always fell ill at the full moon? Or did you realize the boggart changed into the full moon when it saw me?"

"Both," Hermione muttered.

"You're one of the cleverest witches of your age I've ever met, Hermione."

"I'm not. If I had been a bit cleverer, I'd have told everyone what you are!"

"But they already know, at least the staff do."

"Dumbledore hired you knowing you were a werewolf?" Ron gaped. "Is he mad?"

"Some of the staff thought so. He had to work hard to convince certain teachers I was trustworthy-"

"AND HE WAS WRONG! YOU'VE BEEN HELPING HIM ALL THE TIME!" Harry was pointing at Sirius who crossed the room over to the bed and sat down. I followed closely behind my cousin and sat down with him. In the few short times I had met him, his personality had caused me to think of him as a brother. Crookshanks leapt up into Sirius' lap, purring.

"I have not been helping Sirius. If you'll give me a chance to explain, look-" Lupin handed the wands back to their owners. "There. Nina, give them your wand."

"But-" I tried to say, but Professor Lupin gave me a look and I tossed my wand to Harry. I hated being undefended and Mov wouldn't be any help if anyone from the Golden Trio tried to attack.

"There. You're all armed, we're not. Now will you listen?"

"If you haven't been helping him, how did you know he was here?"

"The map. The Marauder's map." The what? "I was in my office examining it-"

"You know how to work it?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"Of course I know how to work it. I helped write it. I'm Moony-that was my friends nickname for me in school."

"You wrote-"

"The important thing is, I was watching it carefully this evening because I had an idea that you, Ron, Nina, and Hermione would try to sneak down to see Hagrid before his hippogriff was executed. And I was right, wasn't I? You might have been wearing your father's old cloak, Harry-"

"How do you know about the cloak?" I was getting very bored of just sitting here. I could tell Sirius' ADHD was acting up as well. He started tapping his foot and drumming his fingers on his leg in the rhythm of My Grandmother Got Ran Over By a Cyclops.I jumped up and began to pace.

"The number of times I saw James disappearing under it...The point is, even if you're wearing the invisibility cloak, you still show up on the Marauder's Map. I watched you cross the grounds and enter Hagrid's hut. Twenty minutes later, you left Hagrid, and set off towards the castle. But, you were accompanied by someone else."

"Who? No we weren't!"

"Yes we were," I snapped. "Peter Pettigrew had joined us for the ride!"

"I couldn't believe my eyes. And then, I saw another dot, moving fast toward you, labed Sirius Black...I saw him collide with you; I watched as he pulled two of you into the Whomping Willow-"

"One of us!" Ron growled.

"No, two of you. Do you think I could have a look at the rat?" When Ron refused to hand over the rat, is when I finally got sick of waiting. My ADHD got the better of me and I grabbed the rat from Ron's hand. I threw the squealing traitor at my cousin. Sirius caught the rat and looked ready to rip its tiny head off. "Wait, we need to explain." Sirius growled and waved his hand to show Lupin that if he wanted to, he could explain but Sirius wasn't going to help.

When Lupin finally finished the story, Harry gave all of us our wands back. Finally! Sev had showed up in the middle of the story and Harry, Ron, and Hermione shot expelliarmus at him. Poor Sev. When Sirius heard he was teaching at Hogwarts, he started cracking up. I guess it was kinda funny with Sev being a grandson of Hades and all.

Finally, the Golden trio believed us. On the count of three, Lupin and Sirius shot a blue light from their wands. It hit the rat and he started to morph. It was the most disturbing thing I've ever seen, and I saw the Fields of Punishment ins the Underworld. The short fur shrunk back into the body of the rat. It began to grow and its skin stretched and bubbled. The head swelled as the ears flattened to its skull and became a part of the skin. After it was all done, a short, balding man stood in the rats place. "Well, hello, Peter," said Lupin, pleasantly. "Long time no see."

"S-Sirius...R-Remus...My friends...my old friends."

"We've been having a little chat, Peter, about what happened the night Prongs and Lily died."

"Remus, you don't believe him do you? He tried to kill me Remus! He killed Lily and James and now he's going to kill me too...You've got to help me, Remus..."

"Why have you been hiding these 12 years if you knew my cousin was locked in Azkaban?" I snarled. Pettigrew looked at me.

"I-I knew, Nina-"

"Don't speak her name, traitor!" Sirius growled.

"I-I knew he was going to break out."

"How? No one has ever done it before," Professor Lupin said calmly.

Pettigrew broke down. He collapsed at Ron's feet. "Ron...haven't I been a good friend...a good pet? You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you...you're on my side, aren't you?"

"I let you sleep in my bed!" I turned a light shade of green. That was gross!

"Kind boy...kind master...you won't let the do it...I was your rat...I was a good pet..."

"If you made a better rat than a human, Pettigrew, it's not much to boast about," sighed Sirius. I could tell the antics of the animagi were annoying him.

Pettigrew turned to grovel at Hermione's feet. "Sweet girl...clever girl...you-you won't let them...Help me..." Hermione sneered at him. Pettigrew turned to Harry. "Harry...Harry...you look just like your father...just like him..."

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO HARRY! HOW DARE YOU FACE HIM! HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES IN FRONT OF HIM!"

"Harry, James wouldn't have wanted me killed...James would have understood, Harry...he would have shown me mercy..."

"Get away from me, you filthy rat," Harry spat.

Pettigrew turned to me. I was backed up against the wall as he shuffled forward on his knees. He gripped the hem of my robes in his shaking hands. "Please, what have I ever done to you, Christina? Help me...Please!"

"GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF MY COUSIN!" Sirius yelled as he pulled Pettigrew away from me. I decided to burn my robes after we got rid of Pettigrew. Or at least seriously disinfect them. "You sold Lily and James to Voldemort. Do you deny it?"

Pettigrew started to sob. He was disgusting. "Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done? The Dark Lord...you have no idea...he has weapons you can't imagine...I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you and Remus and James. I never meant it to happen...He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named forced me-"

This got Sirius even more mad. "DON'T LIE! YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM SINCE WE WERE 17! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"

"He-he was taking over everywhere! Wh-what was there to be gained by refusing him?"

"Only innocent lives, Pettigrew!"

"You don't understand!" Pettigrew was bawling now. I had never seen something so disgusting.

"YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED! DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!" Sirius and Professor Lupin raised their wands and pointed them at the terrified coward on the floor. "Good bye, Peter." They were about to cast the curse that I'm assuming would have killed Pettigrew, when Harry jumped in front of their wands. He didn't want them to murder Pettigrew. He said we should take him to the castle. That way, we could prove that Sirius was an innocent man.

Everyone agreed and the rat was tied up. On arm was bound to Lupin and the other was bound to Ron. I didn't understand that seeing as Ron's leg was broken but didn't comment. There were two fully grown wizards here. I'm assuming they know what they're doing. Sirius floated Sev along in front of him using the same spell I had used to float around the castle. Sirius was talking to Harry about Harry moving in with him when he was free. I realized that once Sirius was free, he probably wouldn't come back to camp. This thought saddened me. I would probably never see my cousin again and just when I was starting to think of him as family. I walked behind everyone else, mulling over my thoughts. Hermione was behind Lupin, Pettigrew, and Ron but in front of Harry and Sirius.

When we got outside, the clouds shifted to reveal a full moon. Oh no, Sev said Professor Lupin didn't take his potion. Sirius realized that too and changed back into his animagus form. Lupin froze and began to twitch. I closed my eyes as he transformed. I couldn't watch the pain that my professor was going through. I opened them as a howl ripped through the night air. Sirius had tackled Lupin to the ground. Sev woke up and jumped in front of us. He pulled his wand out as Lupin kicked Sirius off him and into the forest. Lupin started loping towards us. Pettigrew transformed into a rat and scurried off.

There was a howl in the Forbidden Forest and Lupin ran off towards it. Ron was unconscious on the ground. Harry and Hermione ran off to where Sirius was limping in his animagus form. I felt the warm night begin to cool down. One by one the stars wer disappearing from the sky. A sense of despair fell down on me. Severus cursed in Greek and ran off after Harry and Hermione. Dementors were coming.

I looked around before running into the forest. I followed Lupin as he made his way through the forest. He stopped in a clearing and I hid in the shadows of the trees. I summoned nectar and ambrosia from my bracelet. Chiron once told me how he discovered that if you feed a mixture of nectar and ambrosia to a werewolf while they're transformed, they will shift back into a human and they will lose the ability to change into a werewolf. They still have all the other side effects of lycanthropy and get headaches on the full moon, but it's better than changing into a wolf. I summoned a bowl and mixed the food and drink of the gods together.

When I was done, I picked up the bowl and carefully walked into the clearing. Lupin began to sniff the air like he sensed me standing behind him. I placed the bowl down and carefully backed away. Lupin turned and started sniffing the ground. I froze and watched him. He was beautiful as a wolf. He had chocolate fur and amber eyes. I wanted to go up to him and pet him, but I knew he was a dangerous creature. He still hadn't noticed me. He walked up to the bowl and sniffed the mixture inside. He stuck the tip of his pink tongue out and tasted what I had made. He looked so cute and powerful at the same time. I didn't know that was possible. Lupin decided he liked it and began to drink it. Now, when the full moon sets, he will become a human again and never have to endure this again. He just has to wait till dawn.

Lupin finished the drink quickly. He looked up with those bright amber eyes and sniffed. His tongue poked out to wet his black nose. He was so much like a dog. He caught sight of me and growled. I wanted to run, but my feet felt like they were glued to the ground. Thunder cracked through the silent night air. Lupin sniffed the air again before starting towards me. He quickly broke into a run and pounced on top of me.

His front paws landed on my shoulders and pushed me to the ground. I screamed as I fell. When I landed, my head hit a rock. i looked up at the giant wolf above me with dazed eyes. There were still a few more hours until Lupin would change back.I tried to push myself out from underneath him, but he growled every time I moved. He put his head down and began sniffing my hair and neck. I flinched when I felt his cold, wet nose hit the sensitive skin under my jaw and he growled in warning. He continued his sniffing.

Lupin clambered off of me and gave me a warning bark when I tried to sit up. The pounding in my head just kept getting worse and worse. Lupin lay down next to me and curled up into my side. I was so confused. I had no idea what he was doing. The wolf rested his head on my shoulder and nuzzled my neck again. I didn't know what he was doing, but I felt relaxed by his actions. I lifted a hand and ran it through the fur of his back. His tail began to wag back and forth a little. The last thing I remember is the werewolf licking my cheek. Everything in the world went black.


	46. Chapter 45: Home and Labyrinth

**Here's the next chapter. I have decided against Nina going into the Labyrinth because it's Annabeth's quest and Annabeth doesn't like Nina so she won't chose Nina to go on the quest. Thanks for the reviews sassiecassie218. I'll use A Year Without Rain at Percy's 'funeral'. Amica means friend in Italian. Enjoy!**

Chapter Forty Five: Home and Labyrinth

I woke up to people yelling. "It was Potter's fault!" I heard Sev's voice.

"That will do, Severus." That was Dumbledore's voice. I opened my eyes and sat up. "Think about what you are saying. This door has been locked since I left. Madam Pomfrey, have these students left their beds?"

"Of course not! I would have heard them!"

"Well, there you have it, Severus. Unless you are suggesting Harry and Hermione are able to be in two places at once, I'm afraid I don't see a point in troubling them any further." Sev turned around and stormed out of the room.

Minister Fudge said, "Fellow seems quite unbalanced. I'd watch him if I were you, Dumbledore." I snorted, Sev had just been acting. Both he and Sirius had told me stories of when they were teens and how they had acted like they hated each other. All three adults turned to me. Madam Pomfrey bustled about me, giving me potions and mumbling about how she should get a plaque that said 'Nina's Bed'.

"Ah, Miss Jackson," Fudge said, sitting in the chair next to me. "How are you feeling?"

"Minus the headache, I feel great."

"You weren't, well, you know, bitten by the werewolf, were you?"

"I don't think so. If I was, it was after I passed out. But, right now I don't feel any pain other than my headache so I'm going to guess I wasn't bitten."

Fudge nodded. "Would you mind telling us what happened out there, Christina? When we found you, Remus was still a werewolf and wouldn't let us anywhere near you until he changed back. He was curled up into your side when we got there," said Professor Dumbledore.

I decided against telling the two men about the nectar and ambrosia mixture. "Well, there were dementors all over the place, so when Professor Snape ran down to help Harry and Hermione, I was left on my own. I ran into the forest, forgetting about Ron, and just went where my feet took me. I ran to a clearing where I saw Professor Lupin. He wasn't looking at me, so I tried to back away. He started to sniff the air and then turned around. When his eyes landed on me, I completely froze. It felt like I literally couldn't move. He started to run at me, but I still couldn't move. He pounced on me and knocked me to the ground. That's when I hit my head on a rock. Professor Lupin started sniffing me, and I was paralyzed. I was so afraid he would bite me. Every time I tried to move, he would growl at me and then keep on sniffing. Eventually, he climbed off me and curled up into my side. I passed out then."

Fudge nodded before leaving. Dumbledore gave me a smile with that annoying twinkle in his eye. He left too and Hermione, Harry, and Ron came over to my bed. Harry and Hermione filled Ron and me in on how they had freed Sirius. I was impressed with how they had saved Sirius and Buckbeak. I was very happy that Buckbeak had been set free.

The next day, when I was let out of the Hospital Wing, I went straight to Professor Lupin's office. I knocked on the door and it swung open. Inside, I saw my professor packing all his things away. "You're leaving?" I asked as I stepped inside, the door swinging shut behind me.

He turned around and smiled at me. "Yes, don't worry. You'll still see me. I'm going back to Camp Half-Blood. I used to stay in the Big House when I was a teenager. I can't risk biting anyone else, Christina. I was so close to biting you."

"But you didn't. Besides, you won't have to worry about that anymore. The most you'll feel on the full moon is a mild migraine. That stuff I left out for you was a mixture of ambrosia and nectar. A few years back, Chiron found out that if you feed a werewolf a mix of the two immortal foods while they are in their wolf form, they will stop being able to transform on the full moon. You'll still have all the other symptoms, though."

"Thank you Christina, but it is too late. Last night, someone let slip that I was a werewolf."

"That's not very nice. Why didn't you bite me?"

"Werewolves bite people because they feel threatened by people. Well, at least the ones that don't follow Lycaon, the immortal king of werewolves, or Greyback. He's a wizard werewolf who prefers to bite children. He bit me when I was four because my father angered him."

"Well, I'm off. See you over the summer, Nina." Professor Lupin walked out the door. A few seconds later, he stuck it back in. "Oh, and call me Remus. I'm not your professor anymore now am I?" I grinned and waved at him. I ran up to my dorm to pack and tell Lav and Vati what happened last night and today. Madam Pomfrey refused to let them in to see me.

On the train, Ron begged me to go to the Quidditch World Cup with him and his family. I sighed and gave in. Vati and Lav flat out refused to go. I wasn't sure if I would actually be able to go. We are preparing for a war after all.

When we got off the train, we waved goodbye to the Golden trio, Neville, Luna,Fred, and George. I overheard Harry threatening his relatives with Sirius. Apollo was picking me and the rest of the Skittles trio up in his chariot, so we all ran outside to wait for him. He was already there in a Hyundai Elantra. Why he chose that car, we will never know. He waved to us from where he was leaning against the passenger door of the car. He was texting someone, probably Hermes. When he finished his text, he stuck his iPhone in his back pocket and pulled me into a hug. I heard Lav and Vati giggling behind me as I hugged him back. He opened the door for me and while I was climbing into the front seat, I gave Vati and Lav my best death glare. Lav and Vati climbed into the back as Apollo got into the front.

Apollo kissed my cheek before he started the car and started driving to a secluded area where we could get into the sky. I blushed and Vati and Lav started to giggle more. We made small talk during the long, er, flight back to New York. Apollo dropped us off in front of Goode High School. We were picking Percy up from his Orientation Day and then we were all going to see a movie. Apollo waved as he drove off to the front of the Empire State Building.

As soon as Apollo drove away, I noticed the smoke coming from an area of the building. I sighed, that had to be Percy. Lav, Vati, and I ran off to where the smoke was coming from. Percy jumped out of a broken window and fell on top of me. I groaned as I shoved him off. A red headed girl jumped out the window. "What did you do this time, fratellino? And who is your amica?"

"Oh, Rachel-Christina, Lavender, and Parvati. Nina, Lav, Vati-Rachel. Um, she's mio amica. I guess."

"Hi. You are in so much trouble. AND you still owe me an explanation!"

Police sirens were coming up FDR Drive. "Fish Face! We should go," Vati said.

Rachel pulled out a permanent marker and wrote a phone number on Percy's arm. "Call me and explain, alright. Now go, I'll come up with a story that it wasn't your fault. Just go!"

Rachel ran back to the school. I hoped she came up with a good excuse. We seriously needed to tell Sally's boyfriend about the greek world. HIs name was Paul and he's an English teacher at the school Percy just set on fire. Our day out was just wrecked. In the taxi ride to camp, Percy explained to us about the empousai. Why do the monsters never give demigods a break.

When we got to camp, Lav and Vati left to go talk to Silena and Padma who had been picked up by Mr. D. Percy and I went to the arena to train together. My heart almost stopped when I reached the arena. In the middle sat the largest hellhound I had ever seen. I mean this thing was the size of Hagrid's hut! It was insane! Percy charged it with Riptide when out of nowhere another sword blocked his strike. "Woah there," the man said. "Truce!"

"That's a hellhound!" mia fratello shouted. Another man walked up behind the second one. The second man I recognized. He had sandy hair and green eyes. He seemed way younger than when I last saw him.

"Remus!" I shouted. He smiled and waved at me. He was laughing at the other man.

"She's harmless," laughed Remus."

"That's Mrs. O'Leary," added the first man. He named a hellhound Mrs. O'Leary? Hey, I've got a pet owl named Skittles, I can't judge.

Percy blinked. "Mrs. O'Leary?"

At the sound of her name, the hellhound barked again. I realized something. She didn't want to rip us apart, she wanted to play. The first man grabbed an armored manikin and threw it. The hellhound named MRs. O'Leary chased after it. "Good girl! Get the Greek! Get the Greek!" Did he have to say it like that? "My name is Quintus. I guess you already know Remus."

I nodded and said, "Christina Jackson but everyone calls me Nina."

He stuck out his hand and I shook it. "Percy Jackson," my brother said as he shook hands with Quintus then Remus. "Nina's told me a lot about you Remus." emus gave me a quizzical look.

"Hey, you were one of my favorite teachers." He rolled his eyes at me. Who knew teachers did that. Then again, he did grow up with Sirius. I'll just blame Siri.

Quintus began to explain how Mrs. O'Leary was his pet. He had trained her since she was a puppy. She must be a really young hellhound. But then how did she get so big? Chiron showed up and told Percy and me that Grover had requested that we attend his hearing. I was confused by this. What could Grover possibly have done wrong?

Percy and I climbed up on Chiron's back and he cantered through the forest. Even after playing Capture the Flag in here for two years, i didn't recognize the parts of the forest we were going through. Eventually, Grover put us down in front of three fat satyrs. We were behind Grover who seemed to be telling them a story. Annabeth, Clarisse, and a girl I recognized as a dryad were standing next to us. The dryad was crying and Annabeth had her arm around her. Dryads tears are green like chlorophyll. Annabeth looked at us and mouthed the words 'Grover's girlfriend'. Wow, and he didn't think to owl me! Annabeth whispered, "He'll be fine, Juniper," in the dryad's ear. Oh, I remember her. Her tree is near Zeus' fist. It's this pile of rocks that were named after Zeus but look like a pile of deer droppings. Chiron won't let us rename it 'Poop Pile' because it would be disrespectful to Zeus since it was already named it after him.

The ridiculously fat satyrs gave Grover one more week to prove that he had heard Pan. Juniper looked ready to charge them, but Clarisse held her back. That's a new one, a daughter of the war god holding someone back from a fight. Grover turned around and Juniper escaped from Clarisse and ran to give Grover a hug. My satyr friend wrapped his arms around his dryad girlfriend and buried his face in er auburn hair. Aw, they are so cute together! When Juniper let go of Grover, I gave him a quick hug. Percy gave him a high five.

A conch horn blew. Oh no, it was time for inspection. Every Friday, one of the councillors has to go around and inspect every cabin for cleanliness. Percy and I weren't exactly neat and the cleaning harpies only come around at the end of summer. This meant the cabin was just as messy as it had been over winter break. Percy looked at me and we both ran to our cabin, getting ready to shove things under the beds.

It turned out we didn't need to shove things under our beds. An old friend was in the room cleaning it already. "Tyson!" I shrieked as I launched myself at my baby brother. He laughed and caught me.

"Yay, you are still wearing the necklace I made you."

"Of course, Ty, I never take it off."

Percy was staring at the wall behind his bed. He turned to Tyson, grinning. "You fixed the shield!" I looked over Percy's shoulder to see the shield Tyson had made him after we traveled across the Sea of Monsters. A manticore thorn had severely damaged it over Christmas and it didn't open fully.

Tyson was wearing a flowery apron and latex gloves. I looked around to see our cabin was spotless. The salt water fountain in the corner was glistening. On the ceiling, bronze hippocampi were hanging on almost invisible threads. On the window sills were beautiful sea anemones and plants from the bottom of the sea. A fresh ocean breeze was blowing through the cabin. It had never looked this nice as long as I had been at camp. We got full marks from Silena.

When we sat down at the Poseidon table, Tyson asked about the giant crack in the floor. I was curious too. It wasn't there last I saw. Percy looked around before whispering quietly to us. "Nina, you remember Nico, right?" I nodded. He had disappeared after he found out Bianca died on the quest. "Well, I promised to protect his sister and I failed. She died."

"So he put a crack in the floor?" Tyson asked.

"No, these skeleton warriors attacked us and Nico told them to go away. The crack opened up and they fell through. Nico is a son of Hades. You can't tell anyone." Tyson and I nodded our heads to show we understood. Chiron brought Grover over to discuss things with Percy, so Tyson and I went so he could show me the things he had made in Atlantis.

After dinner, Quintus gathered us all around him. He put us in pairs of three for the game we would be playing. I was with Annabeth and Percy. Wew ere supposed to chase a bunch of scorpions down, looking for the one that had the golden laurel tied underneath it. That meant we would have to kill them. My team and I ran out into the woods and we ended up near Zeus' fist. We began looking for scorpions. It didn't take long to find them.

There were 6 scorpions running around. 4 of them cornered us. We were backed up against Zeus' fist. These things in front of us were disturbing. Quintus had said their technical name was a blast-ended skrewt. I could see why. There tails would blow up and shoot them forwards. I found a crack in the rocks and slipped through. Annabeth and Percy came through after me. I yelped as I felt the ground disappear and we all fell down.

I looked up to see the hole we fell through close up. I looked around but couldn't see farther than a foot in front of my face. "Nobody move," gasped Annabeth. "We're in the labyrinth." I froze. "Look for a delta symbol. If you find it, put your hand on it. It will open the passage back up." I quickly began scouring the walls.

"Found it!" shouted Percy. I heard some fumbling and the hole reopened. I could see a ladder leading up through it. We all fumbled up the ladder through the dim light. When we got up, the sun was setting. That's not right, its only 6. The sun shouldn't set for another hour. I heard people looking for us. We ran in the direction of their voices.

I was pulled into a bear hug, I mean dog hug, by Sirius Black when we saw the others. He explained how we had been missing for nearly an hour. I was confused. We had been down there 5 minutes tops.

Clarisse began to speak and everyone looked over at her. "You were in the Labyrinth. Time passes differently there."

Chiron grew very grave. "We will have guards there. It is a way into camp that will not be blocked by the monster barricades. This is bad."


	47. Chapter46:AnnabthsQuestandPerc ysFuneral

**Here's the next chapter and probably the last one for the weekend. Thanks for the review brelee24 and I used your song sassiecassie218. Mia gemello è morto means My twin is dead. Scusare means excuse.**

Chapter Forty Six: Annabeth's Quest and Percy's Funeral

The next day, we held a council in the sword arena. Normally, our councils are held around a ping pong table, so I thought this one was weird. We were discussing what to do about the entrance to the Labyrinth in the middle of camp. Mrs. O'Leary was chewing on a giant, pink, rubber yak. Silena, Beckendorf, the Stoll brothers, Katie, Castor and Pollux, Annabeth, Percy, Clarisse, and Lee Fletcher (a son of Apollo). Dionysus was on Olympus, so Quintus was filling in for him. Chiron was here too. Even Argus, the camp security was here. (Yes, the original Argus)

Apparently, Luke has been sending spies into the Labyrinth. He was searching for Ariadne's String. That would lead him all the way to the entrance at camp. They had found one of the spies. "Who was the spy?" I asked.

"Ch-chris Rodriguez," stammered Clarisse from next to me. I placed a comforting hand on her arm. I knew she had had a crush on him. "He-he went insane down there." He had been nice during my first year at camp. I hoped he got better. Chiron told us we'd have a guard set up outside the Labyrinth.

Chiron issued a quest. We all looked at Clarisse. She had been the one who went down into the Labyrinth the last time. "I'm not going back in there."

"Don't tell me you're scared," Travis Stoll laughed. "Clarisse, chicken?"

Clarisse jumped to her feet. "You don't understand anything, punk. I'm never going in there again. Never!" Clarisse stormed out of the Labyrinth. I was not going in there. Anything that freaked out Clarisse, I did not want to see. Travis looked sheepish. We decided Annabeth should lead the quest. Now I'm definitely not going on the quest.

It felt like we were waiting decades for Annabeth to come back from the Oracle. My ADHD was acting up so I started to play 'Get the Greek' with Mrs. O'Leary. I was attempting to yank the shield out of the hellhound's mouth when Annabeth got back. We all sat back down to here what the Oracle said.

_You shall delve in the darkness of the endless maze._

_The dead, the traitor, and the lost one raise._

_You shall rise or fall by the ghost king's hand,_

_The child of Athena's final stand._

_Destroy with a hero's final breath._

Something was off. Prophecies almost always rhymed. The last line didn't have another line that rhymed with it. Annabeth obviously wasn't going to tell us the last one. Who would be crazy enough to go on a quest when they didn't know the full prophecy. Well, I already know Grover is. Annabeth is too, but she knows this full prophecy. One look at Percy told me he was crazy enough as well. Annabeth asked Percy, Grover, and Tyson to go with her. Every single one of the idiots said yes.

The next day, I woke up at dawn to say goodbye to my brothers and Grover. I figured Juniper would need some support too. I ran out in a pair of lacrosse shorts and my camp shirt. Lav and Vati met me by Zeus' Fist. My brothers came a few minutes later. They had to finish packing. When they arrived, I was fixing the strap of Grover's knapsack. Juniper was straightening his cap. He was bringing it incase they went into the mortal world.

I hugged both my brothers. I didn't want them to go down into the Labyrinth. Clarisse had brought me down to see Chris. He kept talking about someone named Mary. I didn't want that to happen to mia fratellinos. Chris didn't recognize anyone! I asked both my brothers to be careful. I didn't want to lose them. Juniper and I held hands for comfort as the four companions descended into the Labyrinth.

Two weeks had passed since the four heroes began their quest. I was on guard duty. Juniper sat next to me and we talked, trying to keep our minds off of things. We heard a rumbling behind us. We jumped up and turned around. My wand and Mov were in my hands. A blonde girl tumbled out of the Labyrinth. It was only Annabeth. Wait, where were the others?

I grabbed Annabeth and helped her up. She was covered in dirt, grime, and blood. Dried tears were on her face. I helped her limp to the Big House where Chiron and Quintus were. Juniper followed us.

When we got there, Annabeth collapsed in the chair next to the fire. "I-I failed. Grover and Tyson a-are still st-stuck down there and P-percy, oh, Percy!" Annabeth broke down and Quintus went to get her a hot chocolate. "I'm s-sorry, N-nina. I-I think P-percy d-died in M-mount St. H-helens. Th-there were s-so m-many monsters a-and he-he m-made m-me leave and then it, oh, the m-mountain b-blew up!" Annabeth broke down completely and buried her face in her hands.

Tears started pooling in my eyes. My twin was most likely dead and my baby brother was still stuck in the most dangerous maze in the world! I wrapped an arm around Annabeth's shoulders and she leaned into my side. The tears had started to fall. The only one who had been there my entire life was gone forever. I let go of Annabeth and curled up. I placed my chin on my knees and stared at the fire. I heard someone coming towards us. Someone must have heard the noise.

A man picked me up and placed me in his lap. He started to rub my back. I didn't know who it was, but I enjoyed the comfort. I buried my face in the man's orange camp T-shirt and started to sob. Mia gemello è morto. I kept repeating this mantra in my head. My twin is dead. Mia gemello è morto. When my tears dried up, I looked up to see who the man was. It was Sirius. "Hello, little one," he whispered into my hair.

"Hi," I whispered back into his shirt. He smiled softly at me.

"I heard. I'm sorry about your brother."

I shrugged. "We're demigods. It was bound to happen eventually."

"That doesn't make the pain any worse, though," he said. I hiccuped and rested my head against his chest. He held me as I grieved for my brothers.

Two weeks later, we held a funeral for my brother. Chiron asked me to sing, speak, and burn his shroud. I stood up in front of everyone. My guitar was in my hands and I had found the perfect song. It was A Year Without Rain by some mortal named Selena Gomez.

Ooh ooh ooh

Ooh ooh ooh

Can you feel me

When I think about you?

With every breath I take

Every minute

No matter what I do

My world is an empty place

Like I've been wandering the desert

For a thousand days (oh)

Don't know if it's a mirage

But I always see your face, baby

I'm missing you so much

Can't help it, I'm in love

A day without you is like a year without rain

I need you by my side

Don't know how I'll survive

A day without you is like a year without rain (oh, whoa)

Whoa, oh, whoa

The stars are burning

I hear your voice in my mind (voice in my mind)

Can't you hear me calling?

My heart is yearning

Like the ocean that's running dry

Catch me, I'm falling

It's like the ground is crumbling underneath my feet

Won't you save me?

There's gonna be a monsoon when you get back to me, oh, baby

I'm missing you so much

Can't help it, I'm in love

A day without you is like a year without rain

I need you by my side

Don't know how I'll survive

A day without you is like a year without rain (oh, whoa)

Whoa, oh, whoa

So let this drought come to an end

And make this desert flower again

I'm so glad you found me

Stick around me,

Baby baby baby oooh

It's a world of wonder with you in my life

So hurry, baby, don't waste no more time

I need you here, I can't explain

But a day without you is like a year without rain (oh, whoa)

I'm missing you so much

Can't help it, I'm in love

A day without you is like a year without rain

I need you by my side

Don't know how I'll survive

A day without you is like a year without rain (oh, whoa)

Whoa, oh, whoa

Ooh ooh ooh

Ooh ooh ooh

After I finished singing, Chiron stood up next to me. "I have asked Percy's twin to do the honors." Tears were rolling down my cheeks as I took the torch from Chiron. Percy's shroud looked amazing. Annabeth, Lav, Vati, and Juniper had all helped me make the shroud. It was seagreen and had a blue trident over the symbol of the gemini stitched into the middle. As a border, we had stitched all the foes he had fought and any of his other accomplishments. I lit the shroud and a fresh batch of tears hit me. It was official, my brother was dead.

I turned back to the crowd. "Percy was the best brother I could ask for. He was as kind as he was brave. He was also as caring as he was a skilled fighter. He..." I broke off. I had seen a black haired boy standing just outside the arena. "He's right over there!" Everyone looked where I was staring and saw him too. Percy was alive! Oh, he better have a good excuse for this one.

Everyone stormed Percy. When they moved away, Annabeth stormed over, punched him, and walked off. I walked up behind him as he stared at her retreating figure. I tapped his shoulder and he turned around. I slapped him then pulled him into a tight hug. "You better have a really good scusare, fratello."

Percy pulled back and smiled sheepishly at me. "I got lost," he said. I was ready to slap him all over again. What did he mean he got _lost_! Chiron came up to us and pulled us both onto his back. He cantered off to find Annabeth. When he found her, he took us all back to the Big House. Percy told us how Hephaestus told him how to navigate the Labyrinth. They needed a clear sighted mortal.

"Rachel!" Percy and I said at the same time. We talked a little more with Chiron before he sent Percy to go get cleaned up. The next day, he and Annabeth were to depart to continue the quest and hopefully find Tyson and Grover. I warned Percy that he better not almost die again, or actually die for that matter. I hope it goes better this time.


	48. Chapter 47: Battle and I Love You

**I did manage to update this weekend. Yay! Thank you for your reviews TheSimpleFrenchLady and supernatural-lover568. Enjoy!**

Chapter Forty Seven: A Battle and I Love You

I was in the middle of the cabin area, talking to Lee, Michael Yew, and Will Solace about me and their dad ( the definition of awkward right there), when the questers arrived. All four of them were there, plus one. They arrived on pegasi. Chiron, Sirius, and Silenus were there as well. The extra boy turned out to be Nico. I Hugged Tyson, then Percy. Next came Grover and, finally, Nico. I told him off for running away from camp.

They told us how they had seen Kronos rise (and how Rachel hit him in the eye with a blue plastic hairbrush) and that Quintus was really Daedalus. Chiron and Sirius shared a look like they had suspected this all along. Why didn't they tell me! Grover told us how they had watched Pan fade. Poor Grover, he spent so long searching for him just to watch him fade. You see, immortal beings can't die, but they can fade. They fade when people stop worshipping them or their domain disappears. The wild is slowly disappearing so Pan faded. Silenus didn't believe him and started yelling at him before storming off. Chiron sighed and told us to grab our armor and get everyone prepared for battle. I nodded and ran off to the archery range to warn those who were training.

Everyone was out there in the clearing and helping in some way. The Hermes and Apollo cabins were scattered throughout the trees and in the forest armed with bows. The dryads were armed with bows as well. The Hephaestus cabin had set up tons of traps using Greek Fire around Zeus' Fist. The Ares cabin was set up behind them in Phalanx formation. Clarisse was shouting out orders. Behind them, stood Beckendorf. He was armed with two catapults the size of pickup trucks. They were both aimed at the entrance. Behind him stood the rest of his cabin with their weapons. I looked over at little Harley. He had just turned eight last week and already, he was fighting in battle.

The satyrs were running around with wooden cudgels and trees made of tree bark. The Athena cabin were figuring out battle plans with the help of Remus who had a bow and quiver strapped to his back. I had seen him at the archery range and did not want to be on the wrong side of his bow. The Aphrodite children were running around straightening people's armors. I saw Silena kiss Beckendorf's cheek for good luck. If we all make it out of this alive, I swear I am going to get those two together. Lav, Vati, and Padma stood around me with their weapons drawn. Padma had never been one to miss out on the action and Lav and Vati just refused to leave my side. The twin sons of DIonysus were running around giving everyone juice boxes and water bottles. The children of Demeter were encasing the entrance in vines to make it harder for the monsters to exit the Labyrinth.

Sirius came up to me with Nico trailing behind him. Sirius had a sword strapped to his hip and Nico was holding one with a black blade. "It's not enough," he murmured so only Nico and I could here. I shook my head sadly. I looked around. At the edge of the clearing, Grover was holding Juniper's hands and whispering to her. I wish Apollo was here so I could tell him I love him. I had never said it to him even though he told me he loved me. I was just too nervous and didn't know if I really loved him yet.

"Chiron said he wants you guys to go where reinforcements are needed most when the battle starts," Sirius informed all of us. I nodded. I was watching Tyson move boulders next of the catapult. I felt the ground tremor and would have fallen over if Sirius hadn't caught me. I pulled Mov from its sheath and flicked my wrist. My wand shot from its holster into my left hand. SIrius had pulled out his sword. I turned of see Remus behind me with his bow aimed at the rock formation, arrow notched and ready to fly. I saw the red gleaming eyes of a dracaena through the vines that the Demeter cabin had conjured. She pulled out a bronze sword and easily sliced through the vines. The army of the Titans burst forth.

"Fire!" shouted Beckendorf. Two huge boulders hurtled towards the monsters and took out the dozen Laistrygonians up front. They were cannibalistic giants that were fire proof. Thirty or forty dracaenae burst forth from the Labyrinth next. The Apollo and Hermes cabins easily took them out with a volley of arrows. That's when Hades broke loose. The monsters seemed to stop coming in groups and just swarmed out of the entrance. I started to slash and hack my way through the creatures. I was separated from my friends.

I saw a hellhound leap from the Labyrinth and charge the satyrs. It was not Mrs. O'Leary who had disappeared along with Daedalus. I chased after it and knocked it off a satyr who lay motionless. I sent curses at the hellhound, but I was too late. It pounced on top of me, knocking my wand from my hand.

The hellhound opened its mouth and began to lunge at me. In the distance I could see Juniper's tree was on fire. I couldn't do anything to help. I was going to die getting eaten by a hellhound. I closed my eyes. The hound's breath smelled like rotting fish. One of its paws was pushing down on my chest. I couldn't breath, but in a few moments that wouldn't matter. There was a large crunch and I assumed I was dead. But wait, I'm breathing again. I can't be dead.

I opened my eyes and did I see a sight for sore eyes. In front of me was Mrs. O'Leary and on her back was Daedalus. He slipped off the huge hellhound and stabbed the smaller one that had attacked me. He picked up my wand from where he was standing and tossed it to me. I caught it and stood up, rubbing my bruised chest. "Thanks for that."

"Any time," he grinned back, shakily. He pulled his sword out of the sheath that was attached to his belt and ran off back towards the monsters with Mrs. O'Leary trailing along behind him, crushing monsters as she went.I ran off to help others. I saw a son of Dionysus battling a cyclops and losing but before I could get there, he went down. I charged the cyclops. I jumped into the air and slashed downwards with Mov. That cyclops lost its head. A large group of monsters broke off and began to lumber towards the cabins. Nico saw them and raised his hands. His eyes were closed and he was doing some son of Hades thing. A fissure opened in the ground and a bunch of undead warriors erupted out of it. Nico collapsed to his knees. I wanted to help him, but I was too engaged fighting two telchines. They were these doberman and seal crossbreeds that betrayed the gods.

I heard a scream behind me as I finished off the last telchine. I turned to see a brown haired girl fall to the ground. It was Lavender. It took me only a second to realize what happened. An empousa had shot an arrow t my back and Lav had taken it for me. It was embedded in her stomach. I knelt down to help her, but she pushed my hand away. She coughed weakly before whispering, "Win this one for me, Nina." I carefully hugged my friend and stood back up. I started firing hexes from where I was standing. I wasn't going to leave Lav undefended. The first hex I shot was a blasting curse at the empousa that had hurt my friend.

Juniper ran passed me. She held a stick and had a murderous fire in her green eyes. SHe looked ready to tan someone's backside with that thing. I thought the battle had finally evened out. Then, out of nowhere, an ear piercing screech came from underground. A horrid monster with bat wings burst forth from the Labyrinth. It was a being I had hoped to never meet. She was the guardian of the original cyclopes and the hekatonkheires, or hundred-handed ones, Kampê. She had two long katanas. They were bright green and dripped with poison. She spotted something and started flying. She landed in front of me. "Hello, Daughter of Poseidon. Let us see if you fight better than your brother."

Oh, that something was me. I was so dead. I looked up at the sun. 'I love you, Apollo' I thought. I looked back at Kampê. I raised my wand and muttered a slashing hex. It reflected off her scales and back at me. I had just enough time to create a protego. Spells were not goingt of work. I slipped my wand back in its holster and raised Mov. I stepped over Lavender and got ready for the fight of my life. I was ready to charge when shadow covered the sun. The monster and I looked up to see a boulder sailing towards us. It landed on top of Kampê, crushing the monster. Only her blades stuck out. I looked to see Tyson frowning at the boulder and dusting off his hands. I grinned, BEST BROTHER EVER! Tyson pointed next to him and my mouth dropped open. There was a hecatoncheir standing next to him. I believe that would be the one Percy was telling me about, Briareus. Briareus threw a few more boulders on top of Kampê before turning around to kill more monsters.

I thought the monsters were going to retreat when one dracaena shouted, "Ssssslay them! Kill them all or Kronossss will flay you alive!" The threat was obviously more frightening than us because all the monsters surged forwards. One hit Chiron in his hind legs and he collapsed. Six giants rushed forward in glee. I heard Percy shout. I wanted to run to help, but I couldn't leave Lavender.

That's when it happened. Grover opened his mouth and a horrible screech escaped him. It was like a banshee only 1,000 times worse. I covered my ears to block the noise. It was the sound of true fear. Grover had caused a Panic. In the first titanomachy, the god Pan had made that sound. It struck fear into the hearts of the enemies. It s later named Panic after Pan. Grover truly was the Lord of the Wild. The enemy army quickly ran back into the Labyrinth. All the monsters were gone, for now.

I dropped down next to Lav. Vati saw us and rushed over. I pulled my friends head into my lap and carefully undid her helmet. Her skin was so pale from the blood loss. Vati removed the armor that covered her torso and picked up the knife that was still in Lav's hand. She started to cut open the arrow wound more. We couldn't just pull it out because the arrow head would more than likely get stuck in her stomach and then there would be no way to get it out. When the wound was big enough, Vati grabbed the shaft at the base and yanked the arrow from her sister's body. I summoned ambrosia and nectar from my bracelet and gave the nectar to Vati to pour on the cut. I force fed Lav the ambrosia. Her eyes fluttered open and a little color returned to her skin. She smiled weakly at us and told us to go heal others and that she would be fine. We each hugged her before running off.

I saw Sirius leaning over someone and ran over to help him. Nico was lying unconscious in the grass. The surrounding grass was yellow and dead. Smoke was curling off his body and Sirius was holding him up in a sitting position. I gently poured some nectar down Nico's throat. He coughed and opened his eyes. Sirius laid him back on the ground and felt his forehead and pulse. "Never tried to summon so many before. I-I'll be fine." Mia bambino cugino sat up and stared at something behind me. "Daedalus," he croaked. The old inventor walked up to us and knelt down.

"Yes, my boy. I made a very bad mistake. I came to correct it."

"I found the hundred handed one as I came through the maze," Daedalus explained as Percy, Tyson, and Annabeth joined us. "It seemed he had the same idea, to come help, but he got lost. And so we fell in together. We both came to make amends."

"Yay!" exclaimed Tyson.

"As long as the Labyrinth is here, your enemies can use it," continued Daedalus.

"What do you suggest?" I asked.

Daedalus looked at me for a second. "The Labyrinth cannot continue."

"But you said the Labyrinth is tied to your life force," argued Annabeth.

Daedalus smiled slightly and pulled a silver laptop with a blue delta symbol on the top out of his satchel, or man purse, whichever you prefer. He gave it to Annabeth, telling her it had all his work saved on it. He asked Percy to take care of Mrs. O'Leary. Percy was very happy to do so. I could tell he had somehow bonded with her and he now had a third familiar as well. Mrs. O'Leary licked Daedalus one last time before lumbering off to stand next to my brother. "Will you take my soul for ransom?" Daedalus asked Nico. "You could use it to reclaim your sister."

Nico shook his head. "I will help you release your spirit, but BIanca has passed. SHe must stay where she is."

"Well done, son of Hades. You are becoming wise. One last thing, Sirius. Make sure these idiots don't get themselves hurt too badly. I would hate to see their souls in the Underworld for at least 80 more years." Sirius let out a bark of laughter and we all started laughing as well. "I am ready to see my son...and Perdix. I must tell them how sorry I am."

Nico placed his hand on the side of the inventor's face. "Your time has long since come. Be released and rest in peace." Daedalus smiled as his body turned to ash. I curled into Siri's side. I may not have known him well, but I would still miss him. A rumbling sounded and I felt the earth shake as the Labyrinth collapsed.

"Come on," Sirius said, pulling me up. "We have work to do. I looked around at all the dead bodies. the injured had been all taken care of.

I sighed. The funeral for all who had died was today. Everyone was wearing black. I was wearing a long, black dress. Many on our side had died. There were also some enemy demigods that I recognized from my first few years at camp. Lee had died. I hadn't seen Apollo since before the quest into the Labyrinth had started. I wondered how he was coping with the death of his eldest. I hoped he was okay.

At noon the next day, there was a meeting of the Council of Cloven Elders, or the fat satyrs. I prefered the latter name for them. Chiron as there as well, in his wheelchair. He would be confined to t for the next couple months while his broken leg healed. Silenus wanted to exile Grover, but Chiron made him hear evidence first. Everyone who had been on the quest recounted their version of the meeting with Pan. Everyone who was at the battle was willing to tell the council that Grover had caused a Panic. "A vote!" Silenus demanded. "Who would believe this young satyr, anyway?"

"I would," came a voice from behind us. Mr. D. was back. He looked the same as usual. The only difference was he seemed to be suffering more from grief than wine withdrawal. The satyrs all stood and bowed and Dionysus waved his hand. A throne of grapevines appeared next to Silenus. "Miss me?" The satyrs were quick to agree. "Well, I didn't miss this place. Bad news, the minor gods are joining the Titans." Oh, that is bad news. "I want to hear Grover's story again, from the top."

"But, my lord," complained Silenus, "it is just nonsense."

"I have just learned that my son, Castor, is dead, Silenus. I am not in a good mood. You would do well to humor me." The old satyr gulped and sat down. Juniper held Grover's hand as he retold the story. The three satyrs on the council voted to exile him while Dionysus and Chiron voted against. Thank the gods a god's vote is counted twice when the council is made up like this. The matter was dissolved and Grover was not exiled.

Nco left that night. He wanted to find out more of his past since he didn't remember any of it. When I was walking back from saying goodbye, Mr. D. asked me to walk with him to the campfire. Apparently, I was needed because I always managed to annoy him and he was feeling too good. I choose to ignore that comment. We talked about the war until we reached the amphitheater. I w a large hispanic boy sitting next to Clarisse. He had just told her a joke and they were both laughing. "You cured him?" I asked, excited that my friend was better.

"Madness is my speciality. It was quite simple." I grinned at Mr. D. and ran off to go say hi to Chris.

I went home with Percy for some odd reason. We talked to Annabeth on top of the hill for a little on top of the hill. I actually had a decent conversation with her. Annabeth and I didn't hate each other anymore. We had worked on a lot of projects on Daedalus' laptop together and had gotten a lot closer because of it. We still weren't friends. We were more like co-workers. We worked together and that was it.

While we stood on top of the hill, Hera showed up and began talking about how Percy and Annabeth succeeded in their quest. We realized something. The queen of the gods only care about perfect people. Not people with flaws. She kept glaring at me like I had killed her puppy or something. I was very thankful when the camp van showed up. Percy and I waved goodbye to Annabeth and ran down to it.

Mine and Percy's birthday fell two days after we got back. We didn't have a real part since none of us had mortal friends and Lav, Vati, and Padma had gone back to England. Chiron had agreed that I should go to the Quidditch World Cup and Bill and Charlie Weasley were coming to pick me up tomorrow. It turns out, Sally already told Paul that I was witch and he was cool with it.

Tyson, Sally, Paul, Percy, and I were the only ones there. When I walked down this morning, I almost died of a heart attack. Sally actually hugged me! I looked around to see if there was anyone there she was pretending for. There wasn't anyone so I awkwardly hugged my mother back. I had no idea what was going on. Maybe, she was going to poison me.

Sally had made a purple cake and a blue cake. Why was there one for me? She never did anything for me. This was starting to scare me. While Sally and Tyson were blowing up balloons, Paul asked us to com in the kitchen with him. Uh oh, this is never good.

"I hear your mom is signing you two up for driver's ed next summer," he said.

"You did?" I asked. He nodded. "Wow, I didn't know she was signing us up for that! Why doesn't anyone ever tell me stuff like this!"

Percy laughed at my expense. "Yeah, I'm really psyched."

"You've had a tough summer," he said after studying us for a while. "I'm guessing you lost someone important and...girl and er, guy trouble."

"A couple of friends passed away. And Percy and his friend Annabeth are in love, they just won't admit it."

"We are not in love," Percy snapped at me. Paul and I laughed as Percy began to blush.

"I'm sorry," said Paul. "Percy, Nina, I feel kinda bad giving you another thing to think about, but I wanted to ask you something."

"Yeah?" Percy and I asked at the same time.

"Girl stuff."

"I'm out," I said and started to leave the room. Percy grabbed my shoulder and turned me back around.

"What do you mean?" aske Percy, politely. That's a new one.

"Your mom." I started to giggle. I knew where this was going. Percy was still oblivious.

"I give you my full permission," I said.

"You mean...marrying her? You and her?" Sometimes I worry about you, Perce.

"Well, that was the general idea. Would that be okay with you?"

"I think that's a great idea, Paul. Go for it."

Paul grinned at us. "Thanks you two, let's get back in there.

Percy and I were just about to blow out the candles when the doorbell rang. I ran to get it. "Daddy!" I yelled as I jumped into my dad's arms. He laughed and hugged me back.

"Do you mind if I come in Sally?" he asked.

"Oh no, of course not," Sally was a little surprised. I jumped down and dragged my dad into the living room. Yes, I realize he's an all powerful god. Get over it. I sat him down on the couch and curled up into him.

Paul stepped forward and my dad attempted to stand up, but I was curled up into his lap. He picked me up and plopped me down on the couch so he could rise to shake Paul's hand. "Hi, I'm Paul Blofis."

"Blowfish, did you say?" I giggled. Both Percy and I had made that mistake.

"No, Blofis."

"Oh, pity. I rather like blowfish. Call me Poseidon."

"Like the god of the sea?" asked Paul. Dad smiled and nodded.

"Daddy!" said Tyson as he came back from the bathroom.

"Hello, Tyson," Dad said as he hugged Tyson. I heard Paul ask Sally if Tyson was hers. She said no and that it was a long story. Dad asked to borrow me and Percy for a minute and we went into the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Dad told us about the war. He told us to be careful and remember to keep our heads. He gave us each a sand dollar, saying it would be useful. I had no idea why, but I stuck it in my pocket for safekeeping. My dad gave each of us a kiss goodbye before disappearing into mist.

Percy dragged me up to his room to show me a flower he had gotten from the Ogygia which is the island he got stuck on. He had brought back two and he gave one to me. I decided I should give it to Professor Sprout. Percy planted the other one. We wer about to go downstairs, when we heard a tap on the window. We turned to see Nico standing there. I quickly let him in.

Nico informed us of Daedalus' punishment. He was building roads in Asphodel for all time. That doesn't seem too bad. He gets to see his son and Perdix on the weekends too. He seems to have lucked out. Nico was about to tell us a way to beat Luke when I heard his stomach growl. Percy took him downstairs for some cake. I was about to close the window when a golden glow appeared. I grinned and climbed out the window onto the fire escape. The light dimmed and a blonde man appeared. "Apollo," I sighed as he wrapped me in his arms. I snuggled into his embrace.

"Happy birthday, Sparkles." He was pretending to be a 15 year old again. He mostly stayed that age when he was around me unless he was driving me somewhere.

I pulled back slightly and Apolo looked at me, concerned. "How are you doing with y-you know..."

"My son's death," he whispered. He leaned up against the railing. "It's been hard. It's always hard when I lose a child. Lee, he was a good kid. Hads said he was in Elysium and that always eases the pain a little." I took his hand in my own.

"He was a good friend," I sighed. "'Pollo?" Apollo turned to face me. "At the beginning of the battle, I was scared. I knew we didn't have enough forces. I didn't think I was going to see you ever again." Apollo took my face in his hands and placed a soft kiss on my forehead. "I realized something that I was scared I would never get to tell you. I love you, Apollo."

Apollo smiled at me. His eyes reflected the light just enough to make them sparkle. He leaned down and I stood on my toes. Our lips met in the middle. I didn't see fireworks. Instead, I felt like I was invincible. I felt like there was nothing that could stop me from winning this war. Apollo slowly pulled back, my face still in his hands. "I love you too." That was our first kiss. Well, we'd kissed each other's cheeks and Apollo always kissed my forehead, but that was our first kiss on the lips. It was amazing.

I grinned at my boyfriend. "C'mon, let's go downstairs. You can join the party. We already have two mortals, two children of Poseidon, a son of Hades, and a cyclops. Let's add a god to the mix." Apollo laughed and I led him downstairs.


	49. Chapter 48: The Quidditch World Cup

**Here's the next chapter! Thank you to sassiecassie218, Cookie Spasms, brelee26, meggymoocow, QuillMist9674 for your reviews. There is a song in this chapter sassiecassie218. To meggymoocow, I realize twins don't have actual bonds, I have twin cousins. They are so much a like though and they spend so much time together that they can practically read each other's minds. I just enhanced that since it is a story of mythology and magic. Shout out if you can guess what spell is shot at Nina during the Death Eater attack.**

Chapter Forty Eight: Quidditch World Cup

The next day, Percy and I ate cold pizza for breakfast. Sally was still being nice, um, nicer to me and even Percy was starting to get suspicious. What is that woman up too? When I finished eating, I began to play with the new charm Apollo had given me. It would summon any demigod necessity I needed. Demigod necessities were rope, sleeping bags, pillows, and the most important, duct tape. There were other necessities we needed too, but those were the main ones.

I jumped when I heard our Floo go off in the living room. I jumped up and ran into the room, followed by Percy and Sally. Two red-headed men were stepping out of the fire. One had a pony tail and a fang earring. He was tall and lithe. The other man was average height and had short hair. He was very well built and had burn marks all over his arms. "Hello," said the taller man. "I'm Bill Weasley. I'm guessing you're the twins' friend, Nina?"

"Hi, yeah, I am. You know, I would have thought you would've called me Ron's friend."

'Nah," laughed the shorter man. "You seem too smart to be friends with Ron. He's not the brightest of us Weasleys. Charlie Weasley, by the way." I shook Charlie's hand. "You got all your stuff?"

"What, oh, yeah. A friend of mine cast a charm on it. It's right here." I showed Charlie and Bill the charm on my bracelet that was my miniature trunk. Bill was fascinated by it. Fred and George did say he always loved Charms and Ancient Runes. I hugged Percy goodbye and waved to Sally. I climbed into the fire after Charlie and said "The Burrow," just like he had. The fire flew round me and I shut my eyes. I needed to keep the soot out of my eyes. I pulled my elbows in to keep them from banging against the fireplace walls. I definitely prefered mist travel over this.

Bill and Charlie led me into the kitchen where I was greeted by an enthusiastic Mrs. Weasley. She hugged me and I awkwardly hugged her back. I love hugs and all, but I've hardly spoken more than 10 words to the woman. Charlie seemed to notice my discomfort and tried to distract his mom by asking when Harry would get here. She was about to answer when a thump announced the arrival of people. Four people walked into the kitchen. "Hey, Nina," Fred and George sang, simultaneously. I grinned and waved at the two pranksters. Ron nodded at me and Harry waved before being pulled into a hug by Mrs. Weasley. At least he knows her better than I do.

Mr. Weasley came into the room a few minutes later. He didn't notice Mrs. Weasley. He began to scold the twins and threatened to tell Mrs. Weasley about some prank they pulled on Harry's muggle cousin. Mrs. Weasley demanded to know what was going on so Ron, Harry, Bill, Charlie, and I snuck outside to the garden to set up the tables for lunch. Hermione and Ginny were already out there. Harry smiled at them both, and Ginny flushed, her face turning the shade of red known as Weasley Red.

Bill and Charlie raised their wands and began to levitate the tables into position. One table bumped into the other. Bill smirked and flicked his wand. His table flew back and then went crashing into Charlie's. And that, my dear friends, is how the Great Table War started. Charlie's table knocked off one of the legs on Bill's with a loud clap. Percy stuck out his head and told us to keep it down. Charlie rolled his eyes as he apologized. The brothers set down the tables and repaired the leg. Harry, Ron, and I set up all the plates, glasses, and cutlery.

Bill and Charlie were sitting on either side of me during lunch. They asked me if I wanted anything since I had just eaten breakfast and I said no. It was about halfway through the meal and Mrs. Weasley noticed I wasn't eating. "Nina, dear, you are far too thin. You must eat something."

"I just ate breakfast Mrs. Weasley. There's a five hour time difference between here and New York. It may be one in the afternoon here, but over there it's eight in the morning." Mrs. Weasley blushed and looked down. Most witches and wizards didn't know about timezones.

"Hey, Nina?" asked Bill. I looked up at him. "What was that stuff you were eating? I've never seen it before."

"You-you've never seen pizza before?" I asked. He shook his head along with the rest of the table. I frowned. "Pizza is a dish most Americans associate with Italians, but they don't eat it a lot. It's a dough that has tomato sauce spread over it and melted cheese on top of that. You normally put toppings on it. Mine didn't have any extra toppings on it."

"Mum," said Fred, "can we have pizza for dinner? It sounds really good."

"I have no idea how to make it," Mrs. Weasley said.

"Oh, I do. I have a really awesome gravy recipe too. My cousin, Nico, taught it to me." Mrs. Weasley reluctantly agreed and all the children except Hermione and Percy cheered. Apparently the wizarding world isn't up to date on the foods from other cultures. Pity, you should always expand your tastes. I should introduce the Weasley's to barbeque.

Fred, George, Bill, and Charlie helped me make the pizza. When we let the dough rise, I looked us all over. We all had flour all over us. When Charlie turned around to clean himself off a little, Fred flung some flour at him. Charlie whirled around and threw some at George because that's who he thought had thrown it. We all started flinging flour at each other while waiting for the dough to rise. After, we made Nico's gravy recipe. It was the best recipe, except for Benny's, I had ever had. We put the cheese on then shoved the multiple pizzas in the oven. Mrs. Weasley walked in and yelled at us for messing up her perfectly clean kitchen. Oh well, it's a kitchen. It's supposed to get dirty.

Everyone enjoyed their pizza for dinner. I heard Mrs. Weasley grumbling something about it not being part of their culture. You need a little variety, though. Like Percy and I always go out for Mexican and Japanese even though we're Italian and Greek. We never ever go out for sushi, though. That would just be plain wrong.

The next day, Mrs. Weasley woke me up at five in the morning. I had slept on the downstairs couch. I went into the kitchen and started to make breakfast. Percy and I had started a tradition where whichever kid was up first would make breakfast. I just became used to it, so I started making breakfast even though this isn't my house.I decided on pancakes and scrambled eggs. I hate eggs, personally, but Fred and George told me they loved them so I decided to make them any way.

When Mrs. Weasley came back down, the only people not following her were Bill, Charlie, and Percy. I yawned as I set the pancakes down on the table. The eggs were already there. "Oh, dear, you didn't have to make breakfast," said Mrs. Weasley.

I shrugged, "It's tradition in my house that the first child awake in the morning makes breakfast. This way, our mother doesn't have to wake up early because she takes night classes."

"What are these things?" asked Ron as he poked a pancake with his fork. Wow, they don't even know about pancakes.

Molly's POV

I can't believe that girl! How dare she bring er foreign culture into this house. First the pizza thing last night, disgusting. If she wants to study magic in England, then she should learn how to behave like a proper young lady. I can't believe she actually had a fight with flour against four of my sons. Absolutely horrendous. "These are called pancakes, Ron. There's really no other way to describe them. Try one they're really good." The sounds disgusting. "Mrs. Weasley, where are Bill, Charlie, and Percy? Aren't they going to the match too?"

"They're apparating there," I told the girl. Hermione is much nicer than her. "They won't be up for another few hours."

"Oh, that isn't happening. If I'm getting up at five in the morning, those three are too. I don't care if they're old enough to apparate or not, they are taking the portkey with the rest of us!" The insufferable little girl marched up the stairs. A few minutes later, she returned, dragging Bill and Charlie by their ears. A disgruntled Percy followed behind her. Who does that girl think she is.

Nina's POV

Fred and George applauded as I came down the stairs, pulling Bill and Charlie by their ears. I smiled at them and shoved Bill and Charlie into two empty seats. There was no way I was going to let them sleep in. I always slept badly the first night going back and forth between NY and England. I got maybe two hours of sleep and was not in a good mood. Bill and Charlie were falling asleep at the table.

After everyone had finished packing, Mr. Weasley led us towards our portkey. It was a couple miles away, but I didn't get tired. I had walked twice this length in full battle armor.. Our portkey was being shared by the Diggorys. Cedric Diggory was a Hufflepuff going into his seventh year. He was nice enough. His father was very arrogant. I didn't like him. The portkey itself was an old hiking boot. We all held onto it and Mr. Weasley counted down from ten. On one, the portkey sht into the air. We spun around and let go when Mr. Diggory said too. Bill grabbed my arm and helped me with the landing. I was really dizzy.

I was going to be sharing a tent with Hermione and Ginny. Apollo, please help me! The tent was much larger on the inside than on the outside. Gotta love magic. I went with Harry, Ron, and Hermione to get water for tea. Along the way, we met Seamus and his mom and Oliver Wood, the Gryffindor quidditch captain who was a seventh year last year. They were all rooting for Ireland. I didn't know anything about the quidditch teams, so I was routing for Ireland because they were the underdogs for this match.

To get to the pitch, we had to walk through a stretch of woods. There were little fairy lights lighting up the path. They looked like actual far I'm pretty sure they were actual fairies. Talk about animal cruelty. Mr. Weasley led us through the woods and up the stairs of the stadium all the way to the top box. There was already a little house elf there who said she was waiting for Mr. Barty Crouch Thalia. I said, "That is just wrong to leave you up here if you're so scared of heights! Mr. Crouch shouldn't do something like that!" The elf just whimpered and hid her face in her hands. Percy started to tell me off, saying I had of right to insult my betters. Oh, if only he knew who I really was.

The minister was sitting with us and he shook Harry's hand and then my hand. He asked how I was doing after the traumatizing event with a werewolf. I told him I was fine and had actually spent most of my summer with Remus. He was quite surprised. Percy kept glaring at Harry and me jealously. Bill, Charlie, Fred, and George were laughing at their brother. Fudge introduced us to the Bulgarian minister. Thank the gods I learned Bulgarian two years ago. "Zdraveĭte, moeto ime e Nina. Priyatno mi e."

"Zdraveĭ, Nina . Kŭde se nauchi tozi ezik?"

"Edin moĭ priyatel me nauchi." The minister smiled at me and sat down. Everyone stared at me.

"Would you mind translating for me?" asked Fudge. I shrugged. Percy glared at me even more. Fudge introduced us to the Malfoys who we all already knew. Okay, I didn't know Draco's mom. Lucius Malfoy sneered at Hermione and me. Him and his stupid pureblooded idiocy. "I'm a mudblood and proud of it too, Mr. Malfoy," I said soft enough so only he, Bill, and Charlie heard. The two brothers bit back their laughs.

Suddenly, Ludo Bagman rushed into the place. He was the head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports. We had met him down by the campsite along with Barty Crouch. Bagman put his wand next to his neck. "Sonorus. Ladies and gentlemen...welcome!" his voice boomed across the pitch. "Welcome to the final of the four hundred and twenty second Quidditch World Cup! And now, without further ado, allow me to introduce...the Bulgarian National Team Mascots!" Cheers rose up through the crowds. A hundred woman glided onto the field. They were beautiful, but reminded me of an empousa. Music started and the veela began to dance. The men in the stadium started going crazy. Ron looked like he was about to jump off a mile high diving board. Harry was getting ready to jump out of the box and into the stadium. I turned to see Draco Malfoy with his eyes squeezed tightly shut, trying to stay in his seat.

The music finally stopped and I noticed that Bill, Charlie, Fred, and George were the only ones in our general area who were unaffected by the veela allure. I wonder why they weren't affected. "And now," cried Bagman, "kindly put your wands in the air...for the Irish National Team Mascots!" A giant green and gold comet soared into the stadium. It changed into a shamrock and started hurtling over everyone's heads. Gold started raining down on us. Ron quickly picked it up.

Bill chuckled and leaned down. "That's Leprechaun's gold," he whispered. "It'll disappear in a few hours." I giggled and Charlie chuckled, having heard what Bill said too.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen," came Bagman's voice, "kindly welcome-the bulgarian National Quidditch Team! I give you-Dimitrov! Ivanova! Zograf! Levski! Vulchanov! Volcov! Aaaaaand-Krum!" The cheers became deafening as the famous quidditch player came out onto the field. Krum was apparently the best seeker in the world. Oh well, I still prefer football. "And now, please greet-the Irish National Quidditch Team! Presenting-Connolly! Ryan! Troy! Mullet! Moran! Quigley! Aaaaaand-Lynch!" The Irish Team swooped out onto the fields. I cheered with Fred,George,Bill, and Charlie. We were the only ones in our group routing for the referee came out on the field and started the game. Lynch broke his nose twice. That had to hurt. Ireland ended up winning, but Krum caught the snitch. Go figure, I owe Fred and George 2 galleons.

"Vell, ve fought bravely," sighed the Bulgarian minister. I looked at him and just started laughing. he could speak English the whole time. Fudge was outraged.

"You can speak English! And you've been letting me mime everything all day!"

"Vell, it vos very funny." I laughed harder. The Irish came up into our box. Lynch, the seeker, was being supported by Moran and Connolly. The second crash seemed to have left him unfocused.

"Quietus," muttered Bagman. "They'll be talking about this one for years," he said hoarsely. I bet that spell really takes a toll on your voice. "A really unexpected twist, that...shame it couldn't have lasted longer."

We all were walking to our campsites. All of us were singing and laughing. Bill was carrying Ginny on his back and I was on Charlie's. I have absolutely no idea why. I laughed as I began to sing a song.

I've paid my dues

Time after time.

I've done my sentence

But committed no crime.

And bad mistakes ‒

I've made a few.

I've had my share of sand kicked in my face

But I've come through.

(And I need just go on and on, and on, and on)

We are the champions, my friends,

And we'll keep on fighting 'til the end.

We are the champions.

We are the champions.

No time for losers

'Cause we are the champions of the world.

I've taken my bows

And my curtain calls

You brought me fame and fortune and everything that goes with it

I thank you all

But it's been no bed of roses,

No pleasure cruise.

I consider it a challenge before the whole human race

And I ain't gonna lose.

(And I need just go on and on, and on, and on)

We are the champions, my friends,

And we'll keep on fighting 'til the end.

We are the champions.

We are the champions.

No time for losers

'Cause we are the champions of the world.

We are the champions, my friends,

And we'll keep on fighting 'til the end.

We are the champions.

We are the champions.

No time for losers

'Cause we are the champions

When we got back to the tent, Charlie and Bill put Ginny and me down and we went into the smaller tent with Hermione. The boys all went into the larger tent. I changed into a pair of grey yoga pants and a magenta cami. I climbed up onto the top bunk of the bunk beds Ginny and I were sharing. I quickly fell asleep.

After what only felt like only seconds later, I felt someone trying to shake me awake. I sat up quickly to see Bill's head. "C'mon, Nina, get up, this is urgent." I slid off the bed and reached for my cloths. "No time," said Bill as he threw an orange camp sweatshirt at me. I pulled it over my head and followed him and the two other girls out of the tent. There were tents on fire everywhere. A large group of masked people were shooting random curses. I jumped out of the way of one that looked like a purple flame. I wonder what that one did. Bill,Charlie, Percy, and Mr. Weasley left to go help the ministry. Fred and George led us into the woods. While we were running, Harry, Ron, and Hermione got separated from the rest of us. We kept running until I found a large tree. I pointed up it and started climbing. Everyone followed me up. We stayed there until we saw Charlie running underneath the tree shouting our names. I jumped down and everyone else carefully climbed down. He ragged us towards Mr. Weasley who led us back to where the portkeys were.

We took a tire back to the portkey destination after packing up the tents. Ron, Hermione, and Harry had told us all how they had seen a man conjuring the Dark Mark, Voldemort's symbol. When we got back to the Burrow, Mrs. Weasley pulled Fred and George into a tight hug. She had heard about the Dark Mark and was worried someone had been killed. The last thing she had said to them was that they didn't get enough O.W.L.s, a wizarding test you take in fifth year.

Hermione, Ron, Harry, and I went up to Ron and Harry's room. Harry told us how his scar had been hurting and how he had a dream about Voldemort murdering a muggle. He had written a letter to Sirius. "Harry, Sirius is really busy right now. Hes' helping our family with a really big problem at the moment. It might be awhile before he gets the chance to write back."

"What kind of problem?" asked Harry urgently.

"We're having some family issues that are none of your business!" I snapped at him. They so did not need to know about the second titanomachy.

"Are you saying you're related to Sirius?" Hermione demanded. I nodded and left the room. I saw no need to stay there so I went down to the living room to see what pranks Fred and George were planning.

The day before Hogwarts, they were all looking through the stuff Mrs. Weasley had bought them from Diagon Alley. Harry pulled out dress robes. "Why did she buy these?" he asked.

"Because," Hermione said, "it said to buy nice clothes for a ball on our letter. I have no idea why though." Neither did I,but Apollo had happily brought me to every store there was in Manhattan, looking for a nice dress and matching accessories. He had bought me a sea green dress that matched my eyes perfectly. It also looked good with the silver necklace Tyson made me two Christmas' ago.


	50. Chapter49:TriwizardTournament andDragons

**Here's the next chapter. The wizards find out Mages still exist. There is a new poll on my profile so please vote on who you think should be taken for the second task. Your options are Percy(Jackson not Weasley), Lav, or Vati. Please vote soon because that will be in the next chapter which will be up tomorrow at the latest. Thank you for your reviews sassiecassie218, percyjacksonfan555, and Nichole315. Your correct by the way Nichole315 so congrats! Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Forty Nine: The Triwizard Tournament and Dragons

I spent the rest of summer break at the Burrow. Fred, George, and I had a prank war against Bill and Charlie. The my hair ended up being green for a full week before Charlie relented and changed it back. The silver streak from carrying the Titans curse had stayed silver which I thought was strange. Bill, Charlie, and Mrs. Weasley were using side along apparition to get us to London. I told them the name of a back street, the one I always transport too. They thanked me a lot. Mrs. Weasley grabbed a hold of Ginny and Ron and with a pop, she was gone. There were still five of us who couldn't apparate. That would be a problem. Charlie grabbed Harry and Hermione and disapparated. "Erm...how do I side along with three underaged wizards?" asked Bill more to himself. I grabbed Fred's hand and he and George each grabbed one of Bill's. Thank the gods, I thought I would have to tell them I was a Water Mage.

While we were saying our goodbyes, Bill and Charlie kept dropping hints about something going on at Hogwarts. All I could figure out was that it would be interesting and would involve Charlie coming to the school. It must have something to do with dragons. Mrs. Weasley dropped a hint about there being something going on during Christmas at Hogwarts too.

On the train, I looked for Lav, vati, Nev, and hopefully Luna. I told them about the hints the elder Weasleys had dropped. We spent the first half of the train ride trying to guess what event was coming up. "Maybe it's the Triwizard Tournament," I gasped, suddenly remembering the tournament from Hogwarts: A History. "Three schools send in a bunch of candidates to be their champion. Their names are all put in a goblet which chooses the most worthy. The three champions compete in three dangerous tasks. The Yule Ball is held on Christmas Eve and would explain what was going on over Christmas. Charlie could be coming up because one of the tasks has something to do with dragons." Everyone nodded. It did seem very plausible.

It was raining outside. Now, there's drizzling, there's raining, there's pouring, and then there's those times when Zeus is really cranky and he let's everyone know it. Today was a Zeus is cranky day. When we got into the Entrance Hall, Peeves was throwing water balloons at people. I beckoned to him and he flew down to me. "Add some neon pink dye to it," I murmured in his ear. He grinned and flew off. He came back very soon with more balloons. I heard Malfoy shriek as one of the balloons hit him. His hair was bright pink. I shot Peeves a thumbs up as I walked into the Great Hall.

During dinner, Hermione found out that house elves cook and clean here at Hogwarts. Really, who did she think cooked the food? The teachers? She pushed her food away and refused to eat. Idiota. After the feast, Dumbledore stood up to make his feast. He told us that Hogwarts would be hosting the Triwizard Tournament. Ha, I was right! He also said no one under the age of 17 could partake in the tournament. The two other schools, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, would be arriving October 20th and the champions will be selected on Halloween. Even if there hadn't been an age restriction, I wouldn't have thrown my name in there. I get into enough life or death situations, thank you very much and the death toll for the tournament is rather high in my opinion.

We were all chatting about the Triwizard Tournament when the doors to the Great Hall burst open. A grizzled, old man walked into the room. He was missing a chunk of his nose and his face was heavily scarred. One of his eyes was dark and beady and the other was wide and electric blue (Thalia's was brighter). The way he walked, it sounded like he had a wooden leg. He limped up to Dumbledore and shook his hand. Then, the man limped around the table and sat in the DADA teachers seat. Dumbledore stood up again. "May I introduce your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Alastor Moody." There was timid clapping for the man, the students were all a little stunned.

"He's a retired auror,"Fred whispered from across the table.

"Best there was," George added.

"He'll be a good teacher," they said together.

"I hope so," sighed Lavender.

"Yeah, we never get good teachers," added Parvati.

We went up to our dorms to talk to each other. "So..." grinned Vati.

"So what?" I asked.

"How's it going with you know..." continued Lav. Both girls were sitting on the bed opposite of me and grinning like cheshire cats.

"Oh, its good. He bought me a really nice dress for the Yule Ball at Christmas. Although, he did say it was a pity that he wouldn't get to see me in it." The three of us started giggling and I leaned back against my headboard. I had already tacked my pictures back up to it. I pulled a pillow to my chest.

"Who's he?" asked Hermione.

"Oh, um I guess he's my boyfriend," I said. We had never really said we were a couple. We went out on dates and we both loved each other and told each other all the time but neither of us had ever called the other their boyfriend or girlfriend. I wonder why. Hermione looked at me suspiciously before climbing into bed.

The next day, we went to Herbology. We were squeezing pus from bubotuber pods. It smelled familiar. It smelled like, "Greek fire," I whispered to my two friends. "This is the stuff they make Greek fire out of."

"I think you're right," Vati whispered back. "And, Professor Sprout did say it was dangerous. "Professor," she said out loud. "Is this what the demigods used to make Greek fire back in Ancient Greece?"

Professor Sprout was a little surprised about the question. "Er, why yes, it is. How did you learn about Greek fire."

"We know a guy," I said. Thank you, Beckendorf.

Hermione seemed a little miffed. She probably didn't know what Greek fire was. "What is Greek fire, Professor?" she asked.

"Perhaps Miss Patil could explain it," Professor Sprout smiled.

"Oh, yeah, sure. Greek fire is a substance that, when exposed to oxygen, explodes. You could take out a whole cruise ship with just four jars of Greek fire."

"What's a cruise ship?" asked Ron.

"A really big ship," Vati sighed. "Oh, and Professor, Nina made the connection, not me. I was just asking if it was true."

"Well, five points to Gryffindor." I rolled my eyes at Vati, she could have taken the credit seeing as she's the one who told the class what Greek fire was.

We went to Hagrid's hut for Care of Magical Creatures next. There were a bunch of crates that were rattling. I wonder what's in them. Hagrid told us they were blast-ended skrewts. Lav, Vati, and I looked at each other. Daedalus had us training against them. They were really dangerous. Malfoy asked the point of them as I poked one with a stick. "To kill demigods," I muttered under my breath. Neville, who was standing next to me, looked at me oddly.

In divination, Professor Trelawney told Harry that the thing he fears will come to pass sooner than he thinks. We were doing planets and stars this year. Cool, I hope it didn't have anything to do with the constellation 'The Huntress'. Last year in Astronomy, when Professor Sinistra had made us study the new constellation, I had almost broken down sobbing. Professor Trelawney said that Harry and I were both born when Saturn was in a position of power. I shuddered, Saturn was Kronos' Roman name.

Later on, when we were all walking to dinner, Malfoy tried to hex Harry while his back was turned. There was a bang and suddenly, Malfoy was a ferret. Professor Moody showed up and started using magic to make the amazing bouncing ferret fly around the room. Professor McGonagall showed up and berated Moody for using Transfiguration as a punishment. I thought it was pretty cool, but still, there was definitely something off about that man. His aura didn't strike me right. He seemed to radiate cruelty.

We had our lesson with Moody on Thursday. Everyone seemed pretty eager about it. I was still a little wary. Moody taught us about unforgivable curses. He asked us if we knew any. Ron said the Imperius curse. Moody summoned a spider and placed the curse on it. That curse freaked me out. It reminded me of what Percy said happened to Luke. Kronos' spirit had merged with Luke and now controlled his body. I closed my eyes and put my hands over them. I didn't want to see this. Everyone else, except Vati, Lav, and Nev, were laughing. Moody noticed my discomfort. "You all right there, Jackson?"

I opened my eyes. "A curse very similar to that one was placed on someone I know. He's gone forever now. It makes me uncomfortable 'cause it reminds me of what happened to him." Everyone shuddered at the thought of that happening to them. Moody ended the curse on the spider. No matter how disturbed I was by that, I could still see the curses usefulness. It could stop someone from committing murder or suicide.

Moody called on Neville next. I was shocked, he usually only volunteered information in Herbology. He said the cruciatus curse. Moody pointed his wand at the spider and said, "Crucio." The spider began to twitch. It curled up into itself. I knew that if it could, it would be screaming. I cringed, there was no way I could think of that would make this spell useful. I looked over at Neville. He was staring wide-eyed at the spider. He was shaking. I was about to tell Moody to stop, when Hermione beat me to it. When Moody saw Nev, he instantly ended the cruciatus curse and asked if Hermione knew one.

"Avada Kedavra," she whispered.

"Ah. Yes, the last and the worst. Avada Kedavra...the killing curse." I don't see how it was the worst. I would rather be dead any day than be subjected to the cruciatus. Besides, if someone was dying a slow and painful death, you could put them to rest quickly and painlessly. Moody cast the curse on the spider. I closed my eyes. Memories of the Battle of the Labyrinth flooded into my mind. I had killed. I had killed monsters, but for them I held no sorrow. I had killed demigods, human beings. That thought had been haunting me since the battle. I was a killer, a murderess. Guilt had been weighing me down, and now, it had become worse.

In October, Professor Moody began placing the Imperius curse on us. And here I was thinking that was illegal. He pushed all the desks to the side and had us stand by the walls. So far, about half the class had gone. He beckoned me forward and I stood at the center of the room. I was scared. It would be just like what happened with Luke, only this wasn't permanent. My thoughts were interrupted by Moody shouting, "Imperio!" It felt like I was floating. Is this how Luke feels? A little voice in the back of my mind was telling me to start doing front handsprings. I really didn't see a point in doing that so I just stared at Moody.

"When is the curse supposed to start taking effect?" I asked.

"Well done, girly. It was supposed to have you doing handsprings right when it hit you. That's how it's done. Ten points to Gryffindor." He lifted the curse and the little voice in the back of my mind went away. Everyone started to clap for me. The same thing happened to Lav, Vati, and Nev. Maybe demigods aren't affected by the the curse, but that wouldn't explain why it had no effect on Nevile. Unless...no, Nev couldn't be a demigod could he?

On October 20th, all of the students were standing in seven lines going by year. We were grouped by house. We were waiting for Beauxbatons and Durmstrang to get here. Skittles landed on my shoulder while we were waiting. _What are we waiting for?_

_The other schools who are participating in the Triwizard Tournament. Where have you been?_

_With Lady Artemis. She says hello. What's the Triwizard Tournament?_

_It's a tournament between three different wizarding schools. Hogwarts is hosting this year. It hasn't been held in over 200 years though because of the death toll._

_Oh, are you going to compete?_

_No, even if you didn't have to be 17 or older I wouldn't. i get myself into enough life or death situations._

_Aw, you'd be really good._

_Thanks, Skittles. Oh, look, they're here! _A flying carriage was zooming towards us. At first, I had thought, more like hoped, it was Apollo, but it was definitely a carriage being pulled by pegasi. A giant of a woman stepped out of the carriage. A bunch of very elegant boys and girls followed her. The boys and girls were wearing thin, pale blue robes and had scarves pulled up over their ears. They must be from the South, France by the sound of the school's name, and aren't used to the cold weather of the U.K. The giant woman was named Madame Maxime and she was the headmistress of Beauxbatons.

The students went inside to escape the cold while we all waited outside for the Durmstrang students. I sensed a disruption in the water of the lake.I looked over at it and pointed out the mast of a ship that was sticking out. I pointed to it and everyone started staring at it. A ship rose out of the depths of the lake. The headmaster, Karkaroff, greeted Dumbledore warmly, but his smile didn't reach his eyes. His students all had heavy furs on and they were taking them off. They must be from the North. Karkaroff had an English accent which I thought was odd but brushed it off. He ushered his student called Viktor into the castle because he had a head cold. At first I thought he really cared a lot about his students until I saw Viktor. It was Viktor Krum, the famous seeker. Durmstrang must be in Bulgaria.

We all went inside and gathered in the Great Hall. There were a bunch of French and Bulgarian foods being served. "Hey," said Neville. "If French and Bulgarian visitors come to the school, they serve French and Bulgarian food, but when their is an American student enrolled, they don't serve American foods. That's not exactly fair for you, Nina. You must get pretty homesick around here without anything to remind you of home."

"I do miss my home a lot, Nev, and it probably would help if there was something AMerican here to remind me of my home. I doubt that's going to happen though, so there's no use whining and complaining." Our conversation was interrupted by Dumbledore. He told everyone about the Goblet of Fire and how it worked. He also told us about the age line. Really Dumbledore? A younger student could just ask an older one to put their name in. You have to think of something better than that.

On Halloween, we were all waiting eagerly to find out who the champions were. I had a sudden vision. **Dumbledore was calling out the names of the champions. Viktor Krum was Durmstrang's. Fleur Delacour was Beauxbatons'. Cedric Diggory was Hogwarts. Then, Harry's name was called followed by mine.**

I gasped as I zoned back in. There was an uproar. Harry's name had just been called. I had to think of a way out of this and quick. I didn't want to compete, but once your name came out you either compete in the tournament or lose your magic, something I am not willing to do. I've got it, I'll compete for America. That way, I won't be competing for Hogwarts so the other schools won't hate me. Oh, how will I explain me not putting my name in the goblet? I'll just swear on my magic. Yeah, they won't be able to blame me then. "Christina Jackson!" I gulped and stood up.

"Professor, I swear on my magic I did not put my name in that goblet, nor did I have someone else do it for me." Thunder clapped and everyone gasped. People don't make oaths on their magic everyday. "I do not wish to compete for Hogwarts seeing as that is unfair to the other schools. I shall compete for my homeland, America."

"Very well, Miss Jackson," said Dumbledore.

"Albus, you can't be thinking of letting two underaged students compete, can you?" Professor McGonagall asked.

Dumbledore ignored her. "You may go back into the staff room." I nodded and walked back into the room. This was bad, this was very bad. Harry was shocked to see me there, as were the other champions. I explained everything that had happened to them. Cedric, Viktor, and Harry accepted me but Fleur seemed a little iffy. The professors came in and started demanding answers of Harry. They didn't demand anything of me because I still had my magic, meaning I had nothing to do with putting my name in the Goblet of Fire. When everything had been settled, Barty Crouch, head of the Department for International Cooperation, and Ludo Bagman informed us of the Tournament and how they would tell us what the first task was on the day of the task. We had to complete three tasks. The first task was on November 24th. The judges would be the heads of each school, Mr. Crouch, and Bagman.

I walked the long way to the common room, I needed to get my head cleared. When I got up to the common room, there was a huge party going on. Fred, George, and Lee ran up to congratulate me. The noise all stopped when Ron and Harry started arguing. Ron kept yelling at Harry for not telling him how he got over the age line. Harry kept countering that he hadn't put his name in. I was getting sick of it. Some friend Ron was. "Enough!" I shouted over them. "You two are best friends. What the Hades is wrong with you, Ron? Harry said just last night that he gets in enough life or death situations to bother putting his name in the cup even if he was 17! Act your age, will you?" Ron glared at me and stormed up the stairs. I was panting slightly.

"Thanks," Harry whispered softly before climbing up the stairs.

Harry's POV

Wow, it was really nice of Nina to stand up for me against Ron. Nina is always so nice to people. She's also really pretty. Maybe she'll go to Hogsmeade with me one weekend. We could train together too. Do I have a crush on Nina? I hope she doesn't have a boyfriend.

Nina's POV

I asked Neville to help me train for the tournament. We were going to practice our Mage powers together. This tournament could easily get me killed and no matter how much I want to keep the fact that I'm a Mage secret, I will reveal it if I have too. Lav and Vati are helping me with my wand work. I hope it's enough to keep me alive. If there's a part where there won't be anyone watching me, I am definitely going to pull out Mov. I didn't live all the way to the age of 14 just to die before I can complete either of my prophecies.

I I. my brother about what happened. He was with Paul in the kitchen. Paul had been told that we were demigods, so this wasn't anything new to him. "Hey, guys, what's up?" I asked.

"Nina!" Percy exclaimed. "We're doing my English homework. I need help because my dyslexia is acting up today." I nodded. I knew the feeling.

Paul seemed to notice I wasn't myself. "What's wrong, Nina?'

"There's this tournament here at Hogwarts, and you can get really hurt in it. Someone put my name in and I don't know who. I just figured you guys would want to know." They both frowned. Paul began asking questions about the tournament and I tried to answer them as best I could. In the end, Percy promised to tell Sirius before the man left for England. He was worried about Harry because his scar hurt him.

A few weeks before the first task, Colin Creevey walked into our double potions class. He waved at me and beamed at Harry before walking up to Sev's desk. "Yes," growled Sev.

"Please, sir, I'm supposed to take Harry Potter and Christina Jackson upstairs."

"Potter and Jackson have another hour of potions to complete. They will come upstairs when class is finished."

Sir-sir, Mr. Bagman wants him. All the champions have to go, I think they want to take photographs..."

"Very well,very well. Potter, Jackson, leave your things here, I want you two back down here to test your antidotes."

"Please, sir-they've got to take their things with them. All the champions-"

"Very well! Potter, Jackson-take your bags and get out of my sight!"

"PMSing much!" I called as I ran out of the room with my bag. I heard him take 5 points from Gryffindor. Harry, Collin, and I laughed as we ran up to the room we were supposed to be in. We collapsed against the wall of the room laughing our heads off.

"What could possibly be so funny?" snapped Karkaroff.

We just started laughing harder. I felt someone poking into my mind. I shoved them out and glared around the room. "Who did that. It's not nice to read someone's mind without permission. And to answer your question, I just lost five points from Gryffindor." This made Harry and Collin laugh harder. I was completely serious now. All of the judges were in the room along with two other people. I recognized one as Mr. Ollivander, the wand maker. The other was a woman who Bagman introduce as Rita Skeeter, a reporter for the Daily Prophet. I had read some articles by her. She made almost everyone look bad in them. The woman decided to interview us all and dragged me out to a broom closet. I thought this was really awkward.

She pulled out a quill. I recognized it as a quill that would write down things we said. I told Skeeter I didn't want that to be used, but she ignored me. "So, Christina-"

"Call me Nina, that's what everyone else does."

"Er, right, Nina, how do you feel about someone entering you in this tournament?"

I was about to answer when I saw the quill writing things that hadn't even been spoken. **An ugly scar across her cheek is the only the disfiguring the beautiful face of this young teen, whose eyes are the same brilliant color of the sea and reflect emotion as the sea does.** I ran a finger self-consciously down said scar. Gabe had given it to me when I was 9. I had always been self-conscious of it. "What's wrong with my scar?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing, deary. Just ignore the quill. We'll get back to that later. So, what are your feelings on the being entered in the tournament?"

"Well, I'm actually pretty scared. The tournament has a high death toll and I kinda like living." The quill had written, **The young girl was entered against her will and now has to face the consequences of someone else's actions.**

"And, why did you chose to represent America instead of Hogwarts?"

"Because, Hogwarts already has two champions and already that is unfair to the other two schools. I was born and raised in America and still live there when I'm not in Hogwarts, so I decided to represent my home." The quill wrote, **Christina, feeling America was greatly underrepresented in the magical world, decided to stick up for the home she has known all her life.**

"Do you have any family back in America? How do you think they feel about the tournament?"

"Well, I live with my twin brother, step dad, and mother. My real dad lives pretty close by with my two half-brothers and step mother. My step dad, twin, younger brother, and dad are all pretty worried about me, but my mom, step mother, and older brother probably don't care." I don't know why I told this woman about that, it seems pretty stupid now that I think about it. The quill wrote, **The family that hates her cares nothing for the fact that their only daughter could die. **"Hey, I didn't say that!"

"Ignore the quill, deary. Now, for the juicier stuff." Skeeter leaned forwards slightly. "How did you get that scar?"

"When I was 9." I gave no other information, but the quill seemed to know my thoughts. **The one thing marring her perfect face given to her by her step father forever will keep her from reaching her full potential. **"H-how did it know that?" I whispered.

Rita Skeeter ignored me. "Is it true you looked a basilisk in the eye and didn't die?"

"Erm, yeah, I guess I did. Yeah, I did." The quill jotted this down, **Christina almost died, looking a basilisk directly in the eye at the age of 12, and still, her family cares nothing for this extraordinary girl. Tears fill those eyes that remind one so much of the sea as she recounts how her family cares nothing for her.**

That quill was really getting on my nerves. "Is it also true, that you are a prophetic-seer, my dear?"

"Don't call me 'my dear', but yes I am one. And while we are on the topic, we have ten more minutes before Mr. Bagman finds us in here, so I suggest you hurry." The quill interpreted what I said differently. **Seers are very rare. Prophets are even rarer. Prophetic-seers are the rarest of them all. Young Christina Jackson has mastered her gift of prophetic-sight and has proven it to me, Rita Skeeter. Even with her rare gift and her uncanny ability to not be killed by a basilisk's glare, her family still finds faults in this remarkable child.** Luckily, our 10 minutes were up and Bagman burst into the broom cupboard. "Thank the gods!" I shouted as I ran out of the small space. Bagman led us back to the room where the rest of the champions were. I was just about ready to pull out Mov on Skeeter. Celestial Bronze wouldn't even work on her!

Mr. Ollivander told us how he was going to be making sure our wands were functioning properly. Wow, good thing I polished mine this morning. He did mine last, seeing as he went in age order and I was the youngest. "Ah, yes. A powerful wand indeed. A powerful wnd for a powerful...but you asked me to never tell anyone, a promise I have suck by. "13 inches, white pine, core of pegasus hair plucked from the only silver pegasus, SIlvermist." I choked a little there. The wand bonded to me because Sil was one of my three familiars. "The most powerful wand I have ever created. Yet, you were the only one compatible with it even after I had it in my shop for 11 years. You have quite a lot of power young one." I blushed as everyone stared at me in awe. I knew I had a lot of power, but I didn't need everyone else knowing. Ollivander flicked my wand and a salt water fountain spurted from his tip. Ollivander was satisfied and handed me back my wand.

Rita Skeeter insisted on photos. She had Madame Maxime sit and the rest of us around her. Skeeter had me up front and across from Harry. Then, she had us take individual shots. She had me in a position where you could easily see my scar, something I wasn't happy about.

The day of the first task came faster than I had expected. I had been practicing really hard and Nev and I had come up with new moves for our Mage powers. We could make swords out of our elements. I hoped it would be enough. I had seen Charlie walking around near Hagrid's hut so I figured this must be the task with dragons in it. I had kinda hoped there wouldn't be any dragons. In the tent, Lav, Vati, and Nev all gave me hugs to wish me good luck. Skeeter came in and caught me hugging Neville, and her photographer took a picture of us. How lovely.

Crouch came in and ushered her out. We all picked dragon models out of a bag he had. I went first since I was a girl and the youngest. I pulled out a Norwegian Ridgeback. Maybe I'll be lucky and it'll be one of my familiars. Charlie told me how he renamed Norbert Norberta over the summer. I laughed at his originality. Cedric faced his dragon, a Swedish Short-Snout, first. Fleur went next, her dragon was a Common Welsh Green. Krum went next against a Chinese Fireball. Harry was after Krum with a Hungarian Horntail. I was all alone. I was so nervous waiting there. It seemed like Harry took longer than all the others. That might just have been my nerves messing with me, though. What would happen if I died. Would the Great Prophecy be put on hold till Nico turned 15? Would Thalia suddenly start aging again the day before Percy turned 15? My thoughts were interrupted by a whistle.

As I entered the arena, the crowd went wild. I was wearing an orange, long-sleeved camp T-shirt. Camp Half-Blood was written across it in Greek. I had on black yoga pants so I could move easily. I could see Lav, Vati, and Nev cheering for me along side the Weasley twins and Lee Jordan. The dragon keepers led a large dragon into the arena. I gulped and pulled my wand out. It fit perfectly in my fingerless leather glove clad hands. The dragon keepers left to the sides of the arena and I stared at the dragon. It sneezed and a wall of fire shot at me. Without thinking, I waved my hand in front of me. Water appeared out of nowhere and extinguished the flames before they could get within ten feet of me. The crowd went even more wild. _I'm sorry, Nina! I didn't mean to shoot fire at you!_

_It's okay, Norberta. Just keep doing it so no one gets suspicious. I'll be fine._

_Okay. _Norberta shot another ball of fire at me. I raised both my hands above my head and a wall of water appeared between my familiar and me. People were going crazy, screaming and cheering for me. I slowly walked around Norberta, keeping the wall erect. When I got to the other side of her, where her eggs were, I sent the wall crashing over her to distract her. I quickly reached down and grabbed the Golden egg. When we opened the egg, it would give us a clue about the next task. Charlie gave me a thumbs up as he helped lead Norberta away. I walked over in front of the judges.

Lav, Vati, and Nev ran down before the judges could give me my scores. They wrapped me in tight hugs and whispered encouragement in my ears. I heard the judges whispering about me. Sev smiled at me from his seat. Madame Maxime turned to me, "What exactly was zat, Miss Jackson?"

I glanced up at Sev and he nodded encouragingly at me. "I'm an Elemental Mage. A Water Mage to be exact." Everyone had become dead silent.

"Impossible," said Crouch. "They've been extinct for years."

"No they haven't," said Neville. "Most of them just live in America now. I'm an Earth Mage." To prove his point, Neville raised the piece of earth we were on into the air.

"Incredible," murmured Dumbledore. His eyes twinkled and I didn't like the way he was looking at me. He was to manipulative for his own good. Madame Maxime, Mr. Crouch, Bagman, and Dumbledore all gave me 10s. Karkaroff gave me a 6. Apollo only knows why. Thunder boomed through the clear sky. Strike that, Apollo does not know why. Lav was quick to inform me that I was in first place as we made our way back to the common room for a party. I sighed, the whole world would know Mages still exist because of my stupidity. WHy didn't I just use aguamenti?


	51. Chapter 50: Yule Ball and Mermaids

**Thanks for the reviews TheSimpleFrenchLady, brelee24, sassiecassie218, LoneWolfPack, BatFamilyFan01, JPJacksAniBrony, and QuillMist9674. To brelee24, Apollo should be taken, but the only teacher that knows about him is Sev and he's not helping with the tournament. Plus, Apollo is a god so it would be pretty hard for the wizards to get to him since they can't get onto Olympus. Percy was the person who was taken. Nina and Neville go to the ball together, and there's a little bit of Nina and Apollo romance. Can you guys think of a couple name for Nina and Apollo? If you can, post it in a review and I'll tell you guys m favorite. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Fifty: Yule Ball and Mermaids

In the common room, Harry and I opened our eggs at the same time. A screeching sound filled the common room and everyone except me covered their ears. I knew this language. It was mermish. I quickly shut it once I had heard the whole song.

**Come seek us where our voices sound,**

**We cannot sing above the ground,**

**And while you're searching, ponder this:**

**We've taken what you'll sorely miss,**

**An hour long you'll have to look,**

**And to recover what we took,**

**But past an hour-the prospect's black,**

**Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.**

"Well, I'm tired everyone. See you in the morning!" I shouted over everyone. Lav and Vati quickly followed me up. I told my friends what the egg had said. Vati said she had heard about there being mermaids in the Black Lake. This was good, I didn't need to train for this one because I'm already an accomplished Water Mage. Although, it is kinda unfair to the other champions. It's not my fault someone put my name in the goblet though!

The Yule Ball was coming up very quickly and a lot of guys asked me. I said no to all of them. I didn't even know most of them. I was really shocked when Viktor Krum asked me out. I said no. I don't know how jealous Apollo gets and I really don't want to find out. He may never let me leave New York again! Okay, that was a little dramatic. I felt like I would be betraying Apollo if I went to the ball on a date. Plus, I love him and those guys looked like they meant they wanted to start a relationship instead of just going on a date to the ball. Even Ron asked me out!

What shocked me the most, is when Harry asked me out. "Hey, Nina?" he asked as he cornered me on my way back from a particularly challenging Divination lesson. "Will you go to the Yule Ball with me, on a date? And then, maybe we could go to Hogsmeade together after that?"

You know, I'm pretty sure I told Harry I have a boyfriend just like I told every other guy that's asked me out. "I'm sorry, Harry, but I have a boyfriend."

"So no to Hogsmeade, then, but is that a yes to the Yule Ball? C'mon, Nina, it'll be great, just the two of us dancing, and maybe a little kissing."

I was about ready to slap that boy, Boy-Who-Lived or not. "What don't you understand about I have a boyfriend, Potter?" I snarled. "The answer is no and it will stay no!" I tried to get around him, but he kept me backed in the corner. I looked around but no one was coming to my aid (not that there was anyone over here to begin with). I stepped on Harry's foot really hard, thank Aphrodite I borrowed Lav's stilettos. Harry doubled over in pain and I marched away.

On my way towards the Great Hall, I bumped into Neville. He steadied me and helped me pick up the books I dropped. "Sorry, Nina." Neville seemed really happy.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing, you remember that conversation we had about food the night the other schools got here?" he asked. I nodded my head. We had been talking about why there weren't any American foods in Hogwarts. "Well, I talked to Professor Dumbledore, and he agreed. He's brought American food to Hogwarts!" I looked up at Neville's grinning face, my eyes wide with shock.

"You're joking," I said. He shook his head, still grinning. I threw my arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. "You're the best, Nev!"

"Yeah, um, Nina, if you aren't going with anyone else, would you mind going to the ball with me, just as friends of course. I love you and all, but not that much."

This was perfect, Nev was one of my closest friends! He had asked me to go as friends so I wouldn't be betraying my boyfriend. Yeah, Apollo is my boyfriend. I like the sound of that. "Sure, Nev, I'd love too. I have a boyfriend anyway, I've been waiting for someone to ask me to go as just friends. Now c'mon, I hope the house-elves made pizza.

I wasn't disappointed. There was pizza, hamburgers, french fries, meatloaf, fried chicken, homemade corn dogs, corn on the cob, and even grilled cheese. I took a little of everything. It was all delicious. When dessert came around, there were waffles with ice cream on them, NY cheesecake, apple pie, and peach cobbler. It was amazing. Everyone except Nev, Vati, Lav, me, and shockingly Luna were skeptical of eating the new foods until they saw the five of us and the teachers eating it. It was so good to eat American again. Maybe next time they'll have Americanized Chinese food.

The Yule Ball was tonight. Lav and Vati helped me get in my dress. Seamus was going with Lav and Vati was going with Harry. She had said yes to him before she found out what happened between him and me and now couldn't get out of it. I told her at least she wasn't Padma, who was going with Ron. I wonder why Padma's even going at all, she had said she wanted to become a Hunter of Artemis. Maybe because her dad went through all the trouble of buying her a dress.

Vati was wearing a pale yellow dress that matched her skin tone perfectly. Lav's bright orange gown highlighted her pale skin nicely. My deep purple gown made my eyes pop when I added the silver eyeshadow. I was right, the necklace Tyson gave me did match perfectly. Lav even managed to convince me to where a pair of dangerously high silver stilettos. Well, they weren't really that high, I just have a lot of trouble walking in heels so anything above two inches is dangerously high for me.

Everyone stared at us as we walked downstairs and I blushed at all the attention. Harry especially seemed to be ogling me so I gave him my best death glare. Vati gave him a look of distaste as she stood next to him. She quickly did some last minute fixes to his attire. Lav left to go find Seamus. I quickly found Nev. He looked pretty good in his dress robes, but he had nothing on Apollo.

When everyone who wasn't a champion or the date of a champion was inside, the champions walked in. Fleur had gone with a Ravenclaw named Roger Davies. There was still something about that girl that didn't seem right to me. She knew how to use her veela allure and use it she did. Roger looked like if she asked him to do anything, even jump off Mt. Olympus, he would do it. Cedric had come with Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw seeker. She looked nice in her traditional Chinese dress. Viktor had come with Hermione. Does he have a thing for ridiculously smart Gryffindor first years or something? We walked up to the head table and sat with the judges. Percy Weasley was filling in for Mr. Crouch, who felt ill.

Dumbledore said something to his plate and the food he'd ordered appeared. I ordered penne with a bolognese sauce, being in the mood for Italian. I got a Sprite to drink. Oh, how I missed you, sweet, caffeinated soda. Nev got some Polish dish I had never heard of. For dessert I got a warm sfogliatelle. Once you've had a warm sfogliatelle, you'll never go back to the cold ones.

After we finished eating, the champions were to lead the dance. I hope Nev's a good dancer because I'm not. Nev took one of my hands in his and placed his other hand on my waist. I placed my free hand on Nev's shoulder and we waited for the music to start. It turns out I didn't need to worry. Nev led me through all the steps. After a few minutes, people began to join us. I noticed that Padma didn't come up to dance with Ron. Ron was too busy glaring at Hermione and Viktor. I don't see why he's mad though. He should have asked Hermione before Viktor did. When the song ended, the Weird SIsters came up and began playing a bunch of rock tunes. American muggle music is way better than them. I saw Harry sit down with Vati.

"Hey, Nev, hang on a minute. I'm going to get Vati and Padma. They look like they could use some cheering up." Neville nodded and waited for me to go get our friends.

Harry saw me coming over to them and nudged Ron. Ron smirked and whispered something in Harry's ear. When I got over there, Ron said, "I see you've changed your mind about coming with your boyfriend. I mean really, who would want to date Neville? Come to ask Harry to dance, have you?"

I rolled my eyes at him and grabbed Vati and Padma's arms. "C'mon, girls, Nev and I thought you two could use some cheering up. There are two really sweet Beauxbatons boys that I saw checking you two out." Vati and Padma giggled and followed me back to Neville. There really had been to Beauxbatons boys that kept staring at them and as soon as Vati and Padma got over to them, they asked them to dance. Neville and I high fived. I looked back to see Harry and Ron glaring at me. I gave them a cheeky smile. Lav and Seamus came over to us and started dancing with us.

When I got back up to my dorm that night (everyone else was out taking a walk) I saw a shape lying down on my bed. I opened the curtains and I saw my boyfriend reading my Potions book. He didn't seem to notice me, but I knew better. I grabbed the book and yanked it from his grasp. He turned to look at me with a slight frown. Only Artemis and I would have noticed the amusement in his eyes. He sat up and said, "I thought you were coming home for Christmas." He was pouting.

I sighed and sat down next to him. I gave him an exasperated look. "Don't you give me that look, you knew I had to go to the Ball because I'm a champion and even before that, you knew I was going to the Ball because you're the idiot who bought me the dress." I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at him. We were just messing with each other to see who would break first.

"Well, I assumed you would be coming home right after the Ball, not messing around with your date."

"Well, if you must know, Neville is just a friend and we went to the Ball as just friends! How dare you suggest I was cheating on you!" That was all it took for Apollo to break. He started laughing and I followed a few seconds after. I was surprised, normally I'm the first one to break. He lay back down on my bed and pulled me on top of him.

"I'm just teasing you, Sparkles. Who did Lav and Vati go with?"

"Oh, Lav went with Seamus Finnegan and Vati went with Harry Potter, the poor girl."

"Why is that a bad thing?"

"For starters, I told him I was dating you, well I just said I had a boyfriend, and he still had the audacity to ask me out and flirt with me! Then, he insulted Neville along with Ronald Weasley, Padma went with him to the ball, and asked me out again in front of Vati! How idiotic can you get!"

Apollo growled. He pulled me closer to him and whispered in my ear, "You're all mine, and you're only ever going to be mine. No one else's."

I looked up at him. "Don't you know it. You're stuck with me." He smiled and kissed my forehead. "Ti amo, il mio ragazzo."

"Ti amo troppo, la mia ragazza." I lifted my head and kissed him on the lips. When he pulled away he said, "May I have this dance, Sparkles?"

I giggled and stood up. He jumped up next to me and snapped his fingers. An American slow dance started playing. Apollo pulled me up against him and started to dance. I followed his lead. I don't think I'll ever get the hang of dancing. When we heard someone thundering up the stairs, Apollo kissed me quickly and disappeared in a flash of golden light. The door opened to reveal a flustered Hermione. I glared at her and sat down on my bed. She just ruined the perfect moment. Hermione seemed to be mad at the world, so I just pulled on my pajamas and went under the covers.

The next day, an article in the Daily Prophet caught my eye. It was by Rita Skeeter about Hagrid. Uh oh, this can't be good. How could she even get info on Hagrid? She was banned from Hogwarts during the first task! It told the world how Hagrid was half giant. Oh fudging well! What's it matter if Hagrid's mom was a giant. Hagrid's one of the nicest guys I know. I voiced this opinion to some younger Gryffindors who were freaking out because they had a Care of Magical Creatures lesson with him later on. I had a lesson with Hagrid today too.

When we got to Hagrid's hut, an older lady with short, gray hair was standing in front of the door. She said her name was Professor Grubbly-Plank. When I asked where Hagrid was, she told me to keep my nose out of other people's business. Dear Poseidon, I just wanted to know if my friend was alright. Once the Slytherins arrived, Grubbly-Plank led us down to where the creature was. It was a unicorn tethered to a tree. I glared at the back of the professor's head. I hated it when I saw animals from my dad's realm being tied up. It annoyed me more than the Golden trio and Malfoy combined could.

Grubbly-Plank wouldn't let the boys within 15 yds of the unicorn. How were they supposed to learn? In my opinion, she wasn't a good teacher. She kept giving wrong facts about unicorns. First of all, they don't mind being near men at all. That's like saying Artemis hates all men just because she's a virgin. Completely false, though the same can't be said for her Hunters. Also, she said that baby unicorns were golden. They aren't. They are the same colors as all unicorns. White or silver.

At the end of the day, after dinner, I went to Hagrid's hut. I blasted open the door and marched right in. He seemed rather shocked by my means of entrance. Maybe I shouldn't have blasted open a teacher's door, but I knew he wasn't going to open it for me. I sat down across from him at the table. "Hagrid, why the Hades aren't you teaching? You don't look ill to me! Is it because of that stupid article Skeeter wrote about you?" Hagrid looked down sadly. "Hagrid, you're the best Care of Magical Creatures teacher out there! Who can train a 500 pound cerberus?"

"Me," Hagrid said weakly.

"Who can tackle a fully grown hippogriff to the ground?

"Me," said Hagrid, his voice slightly stronger.

"Who can lift a fully grown blast-ended skrewt up by the tail?

"Me," said Hagrid, confidently.

"And who's going to be out there tomorrow teaching students how to wrestle a chizpurfle?"

"Me," said Hagrid, standing up and slapping his hand down on the table. "I'm gonna be out there tomorrow teachin' kids how tah wrestle a chizpurfle!"

"Good!" I exclaimed, standing up and walking towards the door.

"Yeah, I'm gonna be doin' tha' tomorrow!"

I laughed as I shut the door. That was easier than I thought it would be. And sure enough, the next day, Grubbly-Plank was gone and Hagrid was back teaching us.

The next two months past by quickly. It was February 24th, the day of the second task. I noticed Hermione and Ron had disappeared. The thing we'll miss most is probably one of our friends. The only thing that confused me was none of my friends at Hogwarts were taken. I was kind of nervous. I was wearing a purple and yellow bikini top and a pair of denim shorts. I don't know why I was so nervous about going into the water, but I was. Cedric and Fleur were on either side of me. Fleur was in a full bikini and Cedric was in just a pair of trunks. Bagman blew his whistle and we all dove into the water.

I didn't get wet because of my hydrokinesis abilities. I heard the voices of the mermaids and started swimming towards them. They were singing the song. We were in a bunch of weeds and Grindylows came out and started swarming me. I pulled Mov from its sheath and pointed it at them. When they saw the Celestial Bronze, they quickly swam away. I kept swimming towards the voices. I swam past the giant squid as I neared the mermaid village.

When I got there, the mermaids waved at me. I swam to the center of the town where I saw five rocks. I swam up to them and saw that five people were tied to them. My brother was one of those people. He was the only hostage who was awake. He grinned at me and went back to his conversation with the guards. I rolled my eyes and removed Mov from its sheath again. I quickly slashed his binds. He waved goodbye to his mermaid friend and we swam to the surface. People were cheering as I broke the surface.

Madam Pomfrey was about to throw towels over our shoulders when she realized that both my brother and I were dry. "B-but-"

Percy was trying not to laugh at her face. I slapped him on the back of the head and said, "We're both Water Mages. If we don't want to get wet, we won't get wet." The nurse walked away, stunned. Lav and Vati ran down to us. They through sweatshirts at us and pulled me into a hug. I looked around and noticed that I was the first one up. 56 minutes had passed. Five minutes later, Cedric appeared with Cho Chang. Then came Viktor with Hermione. Last, Harry popped up with Ron and a little French girl. I'm guessing she was Fleur's hostage because Fleur had dropped out when she couldn't get passed the grindylow. Fleur got 25 points, Viktor got 40, Cedric got 47, Harry got 45, and I got 48. I was still in the lead.

Percy congratulated me and then hid behind me. A bunch of girls were coming over to check him out. I glared at them all. Percy whistled and a few minutes later, Blackjack dropped out of the sky. He and Percy had a mental argument before Perce climbed up on him. "See ya, sorellina," he smirked.

"I'm older!"

"I'm taller!" he called over his shoulder as Blackjack took off. I rolled my eyes at his retreating figure. Suddenly, I was swarmed by girls asking about my brother and his pegasus. Professor Moody noticed my predicament and cleared a path for me. I grinned my thanks and ran back up to the castle to change. I was freezing! I heard Bagman say the final task would be on June 24th. Why is it always the 24th?


	52. Chapter 51: Maze and Voldemort

**Here's chapter 51. Thank you for your review Cookie Spasm. I meant that Padma was considering joining the Hunters. I fixed that in the chapter. Thank you for voicing your confusion otherwise I never would have noticed. Thank you sassiecassie218, BatFamilyFan01, ArtemisLovegood, JPJacksAniBrony(yes I meant you), QuillMist9674, percyjacksonfan135, and laurenroxbrough. To QuillMist9674, the wizards know the Greek gods exist. In the chapter Dragons and Detention, I mention a war between demigods and wizards that Professor Binns was teaching them about. A friend of mine gave me the couple name Apollina and I decided to stick with that. Sorry guys. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Fifty One: Maze and Voldemort

On the day of the third task, McGonagall approached me during breakfast, followed by Harry, Cedric, Fleur, and Viktor. "Jackson,the champions are congregating in the chamber off the Hall. The champions' families are invited to watch the final task. This is a chance for you to meet with them." I jumped up and waved goodbye to my friends. Cedric met his parents right next to the door. Viktor met his parents by the fireplace. Fleur's mom and little sister were over by the sofa. Mrs. Weasley and Bill had come to cheer Harry on. Bill gave me a thumbs up and Mrs. Weasley glared at me.

I honestly didn't think any of my family would show up with the war and everything. I didn't see them at first, but then a group of people caught my eye. Percy, Dad, Artemis, and Apollo all had come to cheer me on. I dashed up to them and Apollo pulled me into a hug. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he swung me around like he used to do when I was a little girl. Then, Artemis hugged me followed by my brother. Dad hugged me last. "What are you guys doing here?" I asked in an urgent whisper. "What about the war?"

"Relax," Percy said. "Chiron said I could use a break so I thought a good break would be watching you get yourself almost killed." Everyone glared at Percy for his phrasing. "I said almost!"

"Oceanus is preparing an attack, but we have set up as much as we can and there is no way we could be more prepared," Dad said, quietly.

"What if he finds out you're not there and attacks?"

"He will not be strong enough to attack for another month, child. The sea is safe for now."

"What about you two?"

"It's not like Zeus thinks I'm useful for anything," Apollo pointed out. "He's been yelling at me to get out of the way for the past month. Hey, who's the redhead?" Apollo pointed at Bill.

"Bill Weasley, why?"

"Isn't he the son-" Artemis clasped her hand over Apollo's mouth. She hissed something in his ear.

"What?" Percy and I asked.

"Nothing," Artemis said, glaring at Apollo. He shrugged. "My Huntresses have been prepared for battle. There is nothing more we can do except wait for the actual battle to start."

I nodded my head. Don't get me wrong, I'm really glad they all came, but these are some of the best warriors, no matter how much Apollo hates fighting. I looked up and smiled. "C'mon, I'll show you around." I grabbed Apollo's hand and dragged him from the room. I could hear the others following us.

I led everyone around my school. Percy was greatly amused when the portrait of Sir Cadogan started yelling at him. He pulled Riptide out, in its pen form, and asked the silly knight if wanted to have a fight. I dragged him away before the knight could answer. Everywhere we went, girls were staring at my boyfriend and my brother. I glared at them all and Apollo kissed me when I pointed out Harry so he could send a very clear message to the boy. I'm Apollo's and only Apollo's. Apollo probably would have kept kissing me if my dad hadn't coughed to tell him other people were there. He pulled away blushing slightly. I knew I was blushing too. Apparently, gods blush golden. When I asked about it, Artemis said, "Blushing occurs when blood rushes to your cheeks. Since gods have ichor instead of blood, we blush golden." I giggled, that was kinda weird.

At lunch, Lav, Vati, and Nev joined us. Fred, George, and Bill looked like they were about to get up and join us too, but they looked to be too scared of Mrs. Weasley. I don't blame them, she is pretty scary. Apollo decided that Benny Tudino makes better pizza than the house-elves. I agreed along with Artemis. Dad and Percy looked at us funny.

It was time for the third task. It was a giant maze and we had to reach the center of it where the Triwizard cup was. Everyone hugged me and Apollo gave me a kiss for good luck. Dad gave me an extra hug too. I was going in first since I had the most points. The judges were Cornelius Fudge, in place of Barty Crouch who had mysteriously disappeared, Bagman, Madame Maxime, Karkaroff, and Dumbledore.

Bagman blew his whistle and I headed into the maze. I heard Moody mutter that I should go left. If he was going to cheat, I was going to go right. As the entrance to the maze closed up, I pulled out Mov. I felt the same way I did when I fell into the Labyrinth last summer. Back before the war really started. At first, I didn't meet any dark creatures, but eventually I ran into a griffin. It lunged at me and I slashed Mov down at it. It tried to flinch back, but it was too slow. The Celestial Bronze dug into its flesh and it exploded. I kept running.

I took a right as soon as I could. I could sense the general direction the cup was in because of its powerful magic. My magic just led me towards the large source of raw magic. I took another turn and ran into a creature I hoped never to see again, Agrius. He saw me and grinned, his mouth dripping blood. I raised Mov again when I realized something. This can't be Agrius because he's in America. "Riddikulus!" I shouted. The Agrius look alike turned into a guinea pig. It was just a boggart.

I ran on until I was faced with a sphinx. Before she could start talking, Harry joined us. I glared at him and waited for the sphinx to ask her riddle.

**First, think of a person who lives in disguise,**

**Who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies.**

**Next, tell me what's always the last thing to mend,**

**The middle of middle and end of the end?**

**And finally give me the sound often heard**

**During the search for a hard-to-find word.**

**Now string them together, and answer me this,**

**Which creature would you be unwilling to kiss?**

"A person who lives in disguise," Harry repeated. He looked at me for the answer.

"I'd say a ninja, but they can't tell lies because they don't speak."

"Oh, wait, I got it. A spy, right?" The sphinx nodded. "The last thing to mend, middle of middle, and end of the end."

"Oh, I love that kind of puzzle. It's the letter. The last thing to mend is a D, the middle of middle is a D, and the end of the end is a D." The sphinx nodded again. "Alrighty then, a sound you say when there's a hard-to-find word. Er...that'd be...er.."

"Hang on," said Harry. "Er's a sound! Now, put them together to find a creature you wouldn't want to kiss."

"Spy-d-er. Spider. I wouldn't want to kiss a spider!" The sphinx nodded. She stood up and moved aside for us to pass by her. Harry and I ran forward. There it was, the Triwizard cup was right in front of us. Suddenly, a dark figure jumped out and began running at it. Cedric was going to beat us to the cup. Another dark figure, this one much larger, rushed out of the hedges and rammed into Cedric. It was a humungous spider. Go figure.

Cedric fell to the ground and his wand was flung from his hand. Harry started shooting curses at the creature. They all just bounced off of the spider's thick skin. I knew what I had to do, and I was absolutely disgusted by it. I pulled Mov from its sheath. From the light given off by the metal, I could see the spider's glistening eyes and its hairy pincers. Before I could make a move, It lifted Harry up with those gross pincers. It swung Harry around. I started running straight at it. I jumped off the ground and held Mov out in front of me, pointing down. I started to fall out of the sky. Mov sank into the spider's hair covered skin. It dropped Harry and I heard his leg snap. The spider shook a little before bursting into golden dust. I dropped to the ground, landing on all fours.

I jumped up and ran over to Harry. Cedric was already at his side. At some point, Cedric had found his wand. I summoned a splint and some duct tape from my bracelet. Cedric held Harry down as I set his leg. Cedric and I supported Harry. We all went up to the cup. Cedric looked at Harry and me. "Together then?"

I nodded. "On three, one-two-three-" We all grabbed the cup at the same time. I felt a jerking sensation, and we were suddenly being transported somewhere, like a portkey. We landed in what looked like a graveyard. We all pulled our wands out. Mov was in my right hand and my wand in my left. Who knew what was out here. I saw someone coming out of the darkness. Whoever it was was carrying a bundle. As they got closer, I could see it was a man.

A cold voice hissed, "Kill the spare." A jet of green light hurtled towards Cedric. At the last moment, I tackled him. We fell to the ground and the curse just missed Cedric's head.

"Stay down," I whispered so quietly only Cedric could hear me. Pretend to be dead. Don't move no matter what unless I say to. Blink twice to show you understand." Cedric did as told before closing his eyes. I stood up and said, "You killed him! How could you kill an innocent boy?"

"Quiet!" the man shouted at me. Good, he believes Cedric is dead. The man put down his bundle which I realized must be some sort of a person because it had ordered the man to kill Cedric. The man muttered some curse and pointed his wand at me. I flew towards a large gravestone and was bound to it. Thomas and Mary Riddle were the names on the headstone. The man did the same to Harry. I could just make out the name on the headstone Harry was tied to, Tom Riddle. He must be related to the people who were buried under me. Harry's feet reached the ground beneath him. I was too short, my feet dangling a couple inches from the ground. The man shoved a piece of cloth in my mouth. I noticed that he was missing a finger. It was Peter Pettigrew. I made sure to bite his finger really hard as he shoved the cloth in my mouth.

Pettigrew went to a spot in front of us. He lit a fire and only then did I realize there was a cauldron large enough to fit a human body. What the Hades was he trying to do? The liquid in the cauldron began to boil very fast. Sparks were flying off of it. Wormtail pulled open the bundle of robes on the ground. There was a pinkish body inside. it was disgusting and disturbing. Its face was flat and snakelike. I instantly knew what it was, what was left over of Voldemort. He was trying to build himself a new body. Wormtail lifted up the Dark Lord and plopped him down inside the cauldron. It hissed and sparked even more. Pettigrew began to chant something. "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son!" A bone rose from the grave Harry was standing on. It plopped into the cauldron. The liquid turned a poisonous looking blue.

Pettigrew began to whimper. "He pulled a long, thin, silver dagger from his cloak. He started to dry sob. "Flesh-of the servant-w-willingly given-you will-revive-your master." His voice was broken by sobbing. He held his arm over the boiling liquid and cut off his hand. I almost threw up. Pettigrew's scream pierced the night air and I almost, almost, felt sorry for him. The liquid in the cauldron turned a vivid red.

Pettigrew staggered up in front of me. I tried not to look at his bleeding stump of an arm, instead choosing to look into his beady eyes, tears filling them. He pierced my arm with the dagger, which he had cleaned on his robes, and let my blood trickle into a glass bottle. He let some of Harry's blood drop into the bottle and mix with mine. "B-blood of mage and enemy...forcibly taken...you will...resurrect your foe." He let our blood drip down into the cauldron. The liquid turned a blinding white.

The cauldron began to boil even more violently. The sparks coming off the surface stopped. A surge of white steam billowed off it. A man stood from inside the cauldron. "Robe me," he ordered. Wormtail quickly did as told. The man stepped out of the cauldron. Lord Voldemort has risen again.

A giant snake came from behind the cauldron and started circling Harry and me. Voldemort made Pettigrew hold out his left arm. Voldemort pointed his wand at the mark on it, the Dark Mark. The mark turned jet black instead of just grey. "How many will be brave enough to return when they feel it?" laughed Voldemort. "And how many will be foolish enough to stay away?" Voldemort approached Harry and me. He ran a hand down the side of my face. "You stand, Christina Jackson, upon the remains of my late grandparents. And you, Harry Potter, are on the remains of my late father. All muggles and fools...very like your dear mother, Potter. But they both had their uses, did they not? Your mother died to defend you as a child..and I killed my father, and see how useful he has proven himself, in death..." How sick can you get? Voldemort explained to us how his father had left his mother when he found out she was a witch. "But look, Harry, Christina, my true family returns..."

Loud pops were heard all over. Dark robed figures were appearing. They all had skull masks on their faces. Voldemort stood in silence, waiting for them. They crawled towards him and kissed the hem of his black robes. "Master...Master..." they murmured. Yes, some family they have. They slowly backed away and created a circle. The headstones Harry and I were tied to became a part of the circle and Voldemort was in the middle. There were gaps in the circle as though they were waiting for others to come. Voldemort didn't seem to expect anymore.

"Welcome, Death Eaters. Thirteen years...thirteen years since we last met. Yet you answer my call as though it were yesterday. We are still united under the Dark Mark, then! Or are we? I smell guilt! There is a stench of guilt upon the air. I see you all, whole and healthy, with your powers intact-such prompt appearances! And I ask myself...why did this band of wizards never come to the aid of their master, to whom they swore eternal loyalty? And I answer myself they must have believed me broken, they thought I was gone. They slipped back among my enemies, and they pleaded innocence, and ignorance, and bewitchment...And then I ask myself, but how could they not believe that I would rise again. I who have become immortal!"

"You aren't," I interrupted him, spitting the gag out of my mouth. The Death Eaters all gasped. I guess they weren't used to someone interrupting their master.

"Ah, yes, young Christina Jackson. I nearly forgot you were here, Water Mage." Those Death Eaters who did not read the article Skeeter wrote about Mages still existing gasped. "What could you possibly mean I am not immortal?"

"You are mortal and mortal you will stay. Only a god can grant immortality, and no god would grant it upon you."

"Ah, but you see, I have found ways beyond that of gods to make myself mortal. I shall never die."

"Yet, you are no longer human, you are a monster that belongs in Tartarus!"

"But, I cannot die so I shall never know what it feels like there. Do send my regards to Lord Hades, will you?"

"Thanatos will catch up with you," I hissed at him. Voldemort slapped me and turned away from me. Voldemort raised his wand and placed the cruciatus charm on a Death Eater.

"Get up, Avery. Stand up. I want thirteen long years of service before I forgive any of you. Wormtail here here has paid some of his debt already, have you not, Wormtail? You returned to me, not out of loyalty, but out of fear of your old friends. You deserve this pain, Wormtail."

"Yes master...Please...Master..."

"Yet you helped return me to my body. Worthless and traitorous as you are, you helped me...and Lord Voldemort rewards his helpers..." Voldemort raised his wand and a streak of what looked like silver went flying through the air. It fixed itself upon Pettigrew's bleeding wrist and formed a had. It looked like Michael Jackson's glove.

"It's beautiful, Master. Thank you." Pettigrew scrambled from his spot on the ground to his place in the circle.

"May your loyalty never waver again Wormtail." Voldemort approached the man next to me. "Lucius, my slippery friend. I am told you have not renounced the old ways, though to the world you present a respectable face. You are still ready to take the lead in a spot of Muggle-torture, I believe? Yet, when the Dark Mark showed itself in the sky, you ran. Along with you Crabbe, and you, Goyle, Macnair, Nott." They all began begging for forgiveness. Aren't these supposed to be well respected purebloods? Voldemort stepped to a small space. "Here the Lestranges shout stand. But they are entombed in Azkaban. They were faithful. They went to Azkaban rather than renounce me...When Azkaban is broken open, the Lestranges will be honored beyond their dreams. The dementors will join us...they are our natural allies...we will recall the banished giants...I shall have all my devoted servants return to me, and an army of creatures whom all fear..." He walked towards a large space. "And here we have three missing Death Eaters...three dead in my service. One too cowardly to return...he will pay. One, who I believe has left me forever...he will be killed, of course...and one, who remains my most faithful servant, and who has already re entered my service. He is at Hogwarts, and it was through his efforts that our young friends joined us here tonight...Yes. Harry Potter and Christina Jackson have kindly joined us for my rebirthing party. One might go so far as to call them my guests of honor." Voldemort explained to the Death Eaters how he had used our blood to resurrect himself. He also explained how Bertha Jorkins, a ministry witch, had told him of the Triwizard Tournament unwittingly and how she told him of a faithful Death Eater who would be willing to help.

Voldemort turned to Harry and me again. He used his wand to cut our bondings. He pointed it at me. "Crucio!" he shouted. I felt pain like I had never felt before. It felt like fire was being poured down my throat as 1,000 knives continuously penetrated my skin. It felt as though I was slowly being ripped to pieces and put through a blender. I wanted it all to end. I wanted to die.

Then, the pain stopped. I opened my eyes, panting. I tired to lift myself up from the ground, my my arms were shaking too badly to support myself. I collapsed back onto the ground. The Death Eaters all laughed. Voldemort made Harry get up and had Wormtail give him his wand. "Have you been taught how to duel, Potter?" Harry didn't say anything, but I could practically hear his mind racing. Voldemort gave Harry a mock bow. Harry stood stiff. I could see his injured leg shaking under his weight. Voldemort performed some charm that forced Harry to bow. The Death Eaters started laughing harder. "And now, you face me, like a man...straight backed and proud, the way your father died..." That was low. "And now-we duel." Before Harry could do anything to defend himself, Voldemort had him under the Cruciatus curse.

Harry fell onto the ground. He was screaming and I didn't blame him. I'm pretty sure I was screaming when that curse was placed upon me. What kind of sick person invented a curse like that? Voldemort lifted the curse on Harry, who scrambled up. Voldemort tried to place the curse on Harry again, but Harry rolled out of the way just in time. He dove behind the headstones. Voldemort started yelling at him to stop hiding. I looked back and saw that Cedric was still lying, motionless, next to the cup. Harry dove out from behind the headstone and shout "Expelliarmus!" just as Voldemort shouted "Avada Kedavra!"

Green light hit red and a blast of power emanated from the two spells. I was blasted back towards Cedric. I rolled to a stop right next to him. He opened his eyes and mouthed **What's going on?**

**Harry and Voldemort are dueling. You can move now, they're all focusing on Harry too much to see you anyway.** Cedric and I nodded, sitting up. A golden cage of light was surrounding Harry and Voldemort. An old man emerged from Harry's wand. "He was a real wizard, then," said the man. "Killed me that one did...You fight him boy..."

Another ghost popped out of Voldemort's wand. It was a woman. "That's Bertha Jorkins," Cedric whispered in my ear. She told Harry not to let go. She and the old man began to pace around the inner walls of the golden cage.

Another ghostly woman appeared out of Voldemort's wand. I recognized it as Lily Potter. "Your father's coming...Hold on for your father...it will be alright...hold on..."

The ghostly body of James Potter appeared out of the wand and joined his wife next to Harry. James Potter whispered something to his son that I could not hear. I figured no one else could hear it. Harry pulled his wand up. The connection between the wands broke and the ghost people swarmed Voldemort. The cage fell and Harry ran towards us. He dodged spells from Death Eaters and lunged at us. He grabbed my hand and Cedric grabbed my other one. Cedric summoned the Triwizard Cup, and when he grabbed it, we were instantly transported in front of the maze at Hogwarts.


	53. Chapter 52: Truth Serum and Hospital

**Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the reviews QuillMist9674, percyjacksonfan135, Sassycassie218, StarlightShivers, BatFamilyFan01, Artemis Lovegood, lunarue.13. To lunarue.13, I love your phrasing. To Artemis Lovegood, I probably will make some type of sequel. To percyjacksonfan135, yes, I'll do every book. I will make up stuff in the last two Heroes of Olympus books though because they haven't been published. Oh my gods, I was scrolling through my emails, looking for any questions you guys had, and I almost responded to an email my band teacher sent out. That would have been weird. Enjoy!**

Chapter Fifty Two: Truth Serum and Hospital

I felt myself slam into the ground. I felt a large body land on top of me and another smaller one land next to me. The larger one rolled off and I sat up. Cheers erupted from the stadium. Cornelius Fudge ran up to us. "Voldemort," I gasped. "Voldemort's back!" Fudge gasped. "He's back!" Everything that had just happened caught up with me. I could feel the blood from the cut Pettigrew had made trickling down my arms. My entire body still ached from the cruciatus curse. Harry was sitting up next to me. "Don't just stand there! Voldemort's back!" Tears were mixing with the dirt and grime on my face. The cheers stopped. Dumbledore and all the teachers rushed forwards. I barely noticed that Karkaroff was missing.

Fudge was whispering urgently with Dumbledore and Madame Maxime. Someone grabbed me and Cedric and pulled us up. He started pulling us towards the school, Harry trailing along behind us. There was a clunk with every other step the man took. It was Moody. He took us to his office and forced us into seats. "What happened?" he ordered.

"Cup was a portkey.." gasped Cedric. "Took us to a graveyard..and Voldemort was there...he almost killed me...Nina...Nina, knocked me out of the way...Lord Voldemort..."

"The Dark Lord was there? What happened next?" Mody ordered.

"Made a potion...got his body back..." Harry said.

"The Dark Lord's got his body back? He's returned?"

"And the Death Eaters came...and then Harry and Voldemort dueled..." I continued.

"You dueled the Dark Lord?" Moody asked Harry.

"Got away...my wand...did something funny...I saw my mum and dad...they came out of his wand..." Harry said.

Moody handed us a potion. "Drink this...you'll feel better...come on, now, I need to know exactly what happened..." I recognized the stuff as pepper-up potion. "Voldemort's back, you three? You're sure he's back? How did he do it?"

"He took stuff from his father's grave, and from Wormtail, and me and Nina," Harry said.

"What did the Dark Lord take from you two?" Moody asked.

"Blood," I said, raising my arm. I had worn a short sleeved T-shirt so you could see where Pettigrew had cut me.

Moody hissed. "And the Death Eaters? They returned?" I nodded along with Harry and Cedric. "How did he treat them? Did he forgive them?"

"What does that matter?" Cedric asked.

Moody growled at him and suddenly I remembered something. "There's a Death Eater! There's a Death Eater here, at Hogwarts! They put Harry's name and my name in the Goblet of Fire! They made sure we got through to the end-"

"I know who the Death Eater is," said Moody quietly.

"Karkaroff?" Harry asked. "Where is he? Have you got him? Is he locked up?"

Moody laughed coldly. "Karkaroff? Karkaroff fled tonight, when he felt the Dark Mark burn upon his arm. He betrayed to many faithful Death Eaters to wish to meet them...but I doubt he will get far. The Dark Lord has ways of tracking his enemies."

"But then, who put our names in the goblet?" I asked.

"Who put your name in the Goblet of Fire under the name of different schools? I did. Who frightened off every person I thought might try to hurt you or prevent you from winning the tournament? I did. Who nudged Hagrid into showing you those dragons? I did. WHo helped you see the only way you could beat those dragons? I did. Of course I didn't help Jackson nearly as much. She was far too smart and competent to need my help. She would have caught on if I had tried too much. Who told Cedric to open the egg underwater? I did. I knew he would pass the information onto you, Potter. Decent people are so easy to manipulate." Cedric growled at Moody. I thought he was a good guy. "I gave the book you needed to that idiotic Longbottom boy. Magical Water Plants of the Mediterranean, remember? I knew Jackson wouldn't need help with that one when I found out she was a Water Mage. At first, I had no idea why the Dark Lord wanted her to begin with. But somehow, he knew of her status as a Mage. Who informed the house-elf, Dobby, of your situation? I did. Who stunned Fleur Delacour and placed the Imperius Curse on Krum so he would finish off you, Diggory? I did. The Dark Lord didn't manage to kill you Potter, but I will. Imagine how he will reward me when I bring your lifeless body back to him."

"Why?" Harry asked.

"The Dark Lord and I have much in common. Both of us, for instance, had very disappointing fathers...very disappointing indeed. Both of us suffered the indignity of being named after those fathers. And both of us had the pleasure...the very great pleasure...of killing our fathers to ensure the continued rise of the Dark Order!" Moody raised his wand and pointed it at me. "Ladies first!" he smirked. "Avada-" the door burst open and a ball of silver light shot at the man. He was thrown back, unconscious. Dumbledore, Sev, McGonagall, Artemis, Apollo, and Dad burst into the room. Apollo rushed over to me and gathered me in his arms. He pulled me back behind the adults and other immortals. Cedric and Harry were quick to follow. Artemis' eyes were glowing silver. She was completely in tuned with her magic. Dad's eyes were glowing a deep sea-green. He was also in tune with his magic. Apollo, never much of a fighter, busied himself by checking me over head to toe and making sure I wasn't too badly injured. McGonagall tried to usher us out to the Hospital Wing but Dumbledore told her not too.

"This is not Alastor Moody," Dumbledore said quietly. "You have never known Alastor Moody. The real Moody would not have removed you from my sight after what happened tonight. The moment he took you, I knew-and I followed."

Then why the Hades did it take you so long to follow?" I demanded.

Dumbledore, instead of answering, asked, "Why did you not say you had so many Mages in your family, Miss Jackson?"

"What's that got to do with anything?" Apollo asked. "And aren't you supposed to be close friends with the real Moody?" Dumbledore nodded. "Then how come you didn't realize this was an imposter?" Apollo nearly shouted, kicking the fake Moody's limp body.

Artemis placed a hand on his arm. "Calm down, brother. Your anger is not helping." Apollo seemed to relax slightly and pulled me closer to him. I wrapped my arms around his upper body. Dumbledore flicked his wand and the trunk on the other side of the room opened. It was the type of trunk that had seven compartments. The seventh compartment opened. I looked into it and lying on the floor, 10 feet below, was another Alastor Moody. The real one. Dumbledore jumped down and covered the real Moody with a cloak. Then, he climbed back out.

Sev took the hip flask off of fake Moody's hip. He flipped it open and sniffed it. "Polyjuice Potion. He's been taking it every hour on the hour. He should change back in less than a minute." We all watched as the imposter began to change into a different man. The fake eye popped out of his head and the wooden leg came off with a clunk. The long, gray hair retracted into the imposter's head and turned a straw color.

"Crouch," gasped McGonagall. "Barty Crouch Junior." Sev pulled a clear potion out of his robes and my dad backed up to stand with Apollo, Artemis, and me.

Dumbledore pulled Crouch into a chair and forced the veritaserum down his throat. "Enervate," he said, pointing his wand at the limp man, who didn't wake up. Everyone looked at Artemis. She shrugged and walked up to Crouch. Artemis positioned his face then slapped him. He instantly woke up. A nice red mark was on the side of his face. Smirking, my friend walked back to us. "Can you hear me?" Dumbledore asked Crouch.

"Yes," he growled.

"How did you escape Azkaban?"

"My mother knew she was dying, so she convinced my father to rescue me as a last favor to her. He loved her as he had never loved me. He agreed. They gave me Polyjuice Potion containing my mother's hair, and she took some with my hair in it. They switched me and my mother. My mother died within the hour. My father smuggled me out."

"What did your father do with you when he got you home?"

"Staged my mother's death. Had a nice quiet funeral for her. The house-elf nursed me back to health. My father placed the Imperius Curse on me so he could control me. So I wouldn't go back to my master. I was forced to wear an Invisibility cloak day and night."

"Did anyone ever discover you were alive?"

"Bertha Jorkins. My father had to place a strong obliviate on her. She was a mess after that. It damaged her memory permanently."

"Tell me about the Quidditch World Cup."

"Winky talked my father into bringing me. By then, I had managed to almost completely throw off the Imperius Curse. Winky brought me up to the Top Box and was to say she was saving a seat for my father. I saw Potter's wand sticking out of his back pocket and grabbed it. Winky didn't notice because she had her face hidden. She's scared of heights. We went back to the tent. When the Death Eaters came, Winky bound me to her and dragged me to the forest. I shot the Dark Mark into the sky to show the Death Eaters what loyalty to the Dark Lord meant. When the ministry arrived, they sent stunners into the trees. They hit Winky and me and the magic bond she had created broke. Father dismissed Winky for letting me acquire a wand. It was just me and him in the house. My master came for me. The Dark Lord placed my father under the Imperius Curse. I took the place of Alastor Moody."

"What happened to your father afterwards?"

"I killed him. I transfigured him into a bone and buried him where Hagrid had dug up that dirt for the nifflers."

"And tonight..."

"I offered to carry the cup into the maze before dinner. Turned it into a portkey. My master's plan had worked. He has returned to power and I will be honored above all others." An insane smile lit his twisted features and his head drooped onto his shoulders. Dumbledore ordered Sev to take Cedric to the Hospital Wing. He nodded at Dad, Apollo, and Artemis before leaving. McGonagall was told to stand guard while waiting for the minister to get there. Dumbledore led Harry, Dad, Apollo, Artemis, and me up to his office.

Sirius was waiting there in dog form. When we got there, Sirius shifted back and bowed to the gods. Thank the gods Dumbledore in Harry walked in after that. Sirius hugged me and Harry. Dumbledore made a bunch of chairs appear for us. Apollo pulled me into his lap before I could sit in the chair next to him. Dad placed his hand on my shoulder and stood behind the chair. Artemis sat in the chair next to Apollo and me and grabbed his hand. Harry sat on my other side and Sirius stood behind him. "What happened?" asked Sirius urgently. Dumbledore told him everything Barty Crouch had said. Fawkes flew over and landed on Apollo's shoulder. He stroked the phoenix's head absentmindedly.

Dumbledore asked me what happened after we touched the portkey. My dad glared at him and said, "I kori mou has been through enough, headmaster. This can wait until tomorrow. Nina needs rest."

"Mr. Jackson, I must insist-"

"No! I kori mou is going to go to the Hospital Wing! Tomorrow I am bringing her home, Dumbledore! You have no say over what happens to my child while I am here! Come, Nina." I started to stand up.

"I'm afraid I do, sir. You see, this is my school. I can-"

"Shut up, old man!" growled Artemis. Her hands were clenched of keep herself from injuring the man.

"Albus," sighed Sirius, "give it a rest. Let my baby cousin sleep. Harry could use some rest as well. After you, Uncle." Dad nodded at Sirius and helped me stand. He walked out of Dumbledore's office. I followed closely behind him with Artemis, Apollo, Siri, and Harry. Sirius was in his dog form. We didn't notice Dumbledore leaving as well. I directed my dad to the Hospital Wing where we found Cedric telling his parents what happened.

He waved at us and Madame Pomfrey rushed Harry and me into two beds. She started to feed me some thick potion off a spoon. Apollo took it from her and sat next to me on the bed. I leaned into him and let him feed me. My dad sat on the other side of my bed and ran his fingers through my hair. I looked up at the headboard. There was a plaque that said Nina's Hospital Bed. I giggled and pointed it out to my family. They didn't find it nearly as amusing as me.

Suddenly, Lav, Vati, and Padma ran into the room. They started to bow when they saw the immortals, but Apollo quickly shook his head and nodded towards the mortals. There was no need to let them know there were three Olympians in the room. Percy followed close behind them and they all skidded to a stop in front of my bed. Percy plopped down in the chair next to Dad. Hermione, Ron, Fred, George, Ginny, Mrs. Weasley, and Bill were the next ones to walk in. Sirius was sitting on the bottom of Harry's bed. Bill, Fred, and George checked on Harry before coming over to me and introducing themselves to my dad, boyfriend, and friend.

Mr. and Mrs. Diggory came over to us. They introduced themselves to everyone before turning to me. "Cedric told us how you saved his life. We wanted to thank you for saving our only child."

"No need to thank me, I'm sure Cedric would have done the same."

"Nah, I'm pretty sure you just like getting yourself into mortal peril."

"Shut up, 'Pollo."

The Diggorys thanked me again before walking over to talk to Harry. I looked over and noticed that Cedric had fallen asleep. Madame Pomfrey rushed over and was about to give me another potion when Apollo took it from her and studied it for a moment. He then proceeded to carefully feed it to me. "Dreamless sleep," he murmured softly. After I finished drinking the potion, I could hardly keep my eyes open. I struggled to stay awake. My dad bent down and kissed my forehead followed by Apollo. "Go to sleep, Sparkles. We won't leave. We'll stay by your side the whole time." I smiled slightly before drifting off.

When I woke up, I saw my boyfriend's sky blue eyes staring into mine. Je smiled slightly and kissed my nose. I scrunched it up. There were a bunch of voices whispering around us. "They'll wake them up if they don't shut up!" a female voice snapped.

"What else could have happened?" I heard shouting outside the Hospital Wing. It sounded like McGonagall and Fudge. Apollo helped me sit up. I rubbed my eyes and tried to stretch my legs. I couldn't move them because a solid mass was at my knees. I looked down to see Siri, still in his dog form. He was growling as Fudge, McGonagall, and Sev strood into the ward. Sev rushed to my side and began checking me over with Siri's help.

"I'm fine," I grumbled. He ignored me and continued his work. Siri was sniffing me for who knows what reason. Mrs. Weasley glared at the minister and McGonagall and rushed over to me as well. Dumbledore rushed in and started arguing with Fudge about Voldemort's return.

"You two are awake," said Mrs. Weasley.

"**Gods sleep?"** I asked Apollo.

"**Yeah..."**

"**Oh."** Mrs. Weasley felt my forehead for a temperature.

"You, young man, should get out of that bed."

"What, why?"

"It's hardly proper. I let it slide while she was asleep, but now that Christina is awake you really should get out."

"Mrs. Weasley, you're not my parent or Morgan's parent," I said, using Apollo's mortal name, still finding no reason to let everyone know there was a god in their presence. "I'd greatly appreciate it if you didn't tell my boyfriend what to do. My dad was okay with it, right, Morgie?"

"He didn't say anything against it while he was here," Apollo shrugged. As if right on cue, my dad walked into the room, followed by Artemis and Padma. Padma had a glow around her and I realized she had become a Huntress. She grinned at me and I noticed that for the first time, she was truly happy. I gave her a thumbs up.

"Is something wrong over here?" Dad asked.

"You're letting a boy sleep with your daughter?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"Yeah..."

"That is quite improper. Boys should stay away from girls as young as Christina in general and you're allowing one to be in the same bed as her."

"Yes, well, last I checked her mother's name was Sally, not Molly, and since neither of us have a problem with Morgan and Nina being in a bed together, I suggest you keep your nose out of other families business." Mrs. Weasley humphed and went to argue with Bill about cutting his hair. "Isn't her son of age by now?"

"Yup," I said.

"When do you think she's going to realize she doesn't control him anymore?" Padma continued for Dad.

"Never, that's why Bill moved to Egypt and Charlie moved to Romania," I finished. "Where's everyone else?" Dad pointed at the beds across from us. Vati was asleep on one and on the one next to her, Percy and Lav were curled up with each other. "Aw, they look so cute together!" Everyone looked at me funny. "What?" They just shook their heads.

Fudge was now yelling at Dumbledore who was replying calmly. Harry and Cedric were awake and also sitting up. Fudge stormed from the room, paused and turned around. He dropped small bags on Cedric's bed, Harry's bed, and my bed. "Your winnings," he said curtly. "1,000 galleons each. There should have been a ceremony, but given the circumstances..." The man crammed his bowler cap on his head and walked briskly from the room.

"He doesn't believe us?" Cedric asked.

"No," said Dumbledore. "He cares too much about his career to say that Voldemort is back. We shall take matters into our own hands. Minerva, kindly ask Hagrid and Madame Maxime to meet me in my office." McGonagall nodded and left the ward. "Poppy, please go into Professor Moody's office. There is a house-elf there greatly in need of your assistance." Madame Pomfrey left. Dumbledore made sure the door was closed and that the footsteps had died away. "Sirius, if you would..." Sirius lept off my bed and transformed into a human in mid air. Mrs. Weasley shrieked and jumped away.

"Sirius Black!" she shouted.

"Mum!" said Ron. "Shut up! It's okay!"

"Sirius, alert Remus, Arabella Figg, Mundungus Fletcher-the old crowd."

"Wait!" Sirius interrupted. "I have to go to Long Island and come back just to tell Moony? Can't you just Floo him?"

"Isn't he at his house?"

"He moved to Long Island over the summer, that's in America if you don't know."

"I know where Long Island is. Yes, just Floo him. Lie low after that." Siri nodded and transformed back into a dog. He ran from the room. "Severus...you know what I must ask you to do...if you are ready...if you are prepared..."

"Yes," said Sev. He nodded in the direction of the immortals before leaving the room.

"Would it be too much to ask for your help?" Dumbledore asked my family. "Your daughter would be a target after all, a Mage and a muggleborn. You could help protect her."

My father looked at me. "Are you going to..."

"Yes, I will. It's the only way."

"My daughter will need no further protection after this summer. We have problems of our on back in America. Lavender, Parvati, Percy, wake up. We must take our leave." In an instant the three jumped out of bed. Apollo helped me get out of bed and I jumped on his back. "I am taking them all home now."

"I'm afraid you have no right over the Patils and Miss Brown." My dad pulled a letter from his pocket and handed it to the Headmaster.

"Let's go." We all walked down to the grounds here the sun chariot was waiting for us to raise the sun. We all climbed in, it was in bus form, and Apollo drove us east. My dad kissed Percy and me goodbye before disappearing into the mist. Apollo dropped Lav and Vati off at camp and continued towards Manhattan with Padma, Artemis, Percy, and me. Percy and I got out on the outskirts of Manhattan. Apollo gave me a passionate kiss before allowing me to exit the sun bus. Percy and I raced each other towards our apartment building. Time to prepare for war.


	54. Chapter 53: Explosions and Council

**Three chapters in less than 24 hours! Yay! Thanks for the reviews 4everepic, sassiecassie218, Cookie Spasms, and Artemis Lovegood. Bill, Charlie, Fred, and George are children of Mercury. None of the other Weasleys are related to the gods in any way except Molly cheated on Arthur with one. Mercury did not know she was married cause I don't want to make him a bad guy. To Cookie Spasms, all will make sense after the second gigomachy. This is the start of The Last Olympian. It will probably have more chapters than the other books.**

Chapter Fifty Three: Explosives and Council

Sally and Paul took Rachel, Percy, and me to a private stretch of beach. Percy was practicing his driving even though we weren't turning 16 for another week. I had gotten really close to Rachel over the last couple of weeks. She went to Percy's high school so she was his closest mortal friend. I'm pretty sure she's the only thing keeping my brother and me sane with the whole Titan war going on. Right now, Percy and I are on call for a mission. Any day now, Beckendorf was going to come get us so we could go blow up the Princess Andromeda. Rachel asked if we could go to St. Thomas with her and her family. We told her no because that would mean we would be out of Manhattan on our birthday, the supposed start of the Apocalypse. We couldn't be away when Olympus was either supposed to fall or be saved by us.

Rachel started to flirt with Percy and I just started laughing at how clueless he was. Rachel was trying to get him to kiss her and he looked like one of my boyfriends sacred cows-slow, dumb, and bright red. I was lying down on the sand laughing my head off when I heard 8 crunches. _Hey, Nina. Nice car! _

_Aw, Sil, that's my step dad's! Now he'll never let me drive it! What are you doing here?_

I looked up and saw who was riding. "'Sup, Percy, Nina."

"Hey, Beck," I sighed ushering the two pegasi off the car. Blackjack was the other pegasus and Beckendorf was riding him. Sil wouldn't let anyone but me ride her unless they said they had my permission. Don't even think about lying to her either. Apollo blessed her so she could sense lies.

"Time?" Percy asked.

Beckendorf nodded grimly. I sighed and jumped up. "Hi," said Rachel, looking up at Beckendorf.

"Oh, hey. I'm Beckendorf. You must be Rachel. Percy's told me...uh, I mean he's mentioned you."

Rachel raised an eyebrow and looked at Percy. "Really? Good. So, I guess you guys have to go save the world now."

"Pretty much," I agreed, hopping onto Sil's back. "Would you tell Paul and Sally-"

"I'll tell them. I'm sure they're used to it. And I'll explain to Paul about the hood." I nodded my thanks. Bet this is the last time Paul loans us his car. Rachel stood on her tiptoes and kissed Percy before he could do anything. "Now, get going half-bloods. Go kill some monsters for me." Percy climbed up on Blackjack behind Beck.

We shot off into the sky. "So," said Beckendorf, breaking the silence, "I'm guessing you don't want me to mention that little scene to Lavender."

"Oh, gods. Don't even think about it," was Percy's answer. Beck and I chuckled. Poor Percy, he's having girl troubles.

It was dark by the time we reached the Princess Andromeda. Silvermist and Blackjack were getting really antsy. They were held captive here for gods know how long and I hated bringing them back here. Our pegasi set us down on the lowest stern deck. "Don't wait for us," Percy told them.

_But-_started Sil.

"Trust us," I said. "We'll get out by ourselves." Sil nuzzled me before flying off with her twin. Beckendorf pulled out a piece of paper. At first, I thought it was a map. I realized it was a photograph. He stared at it in the low light-Silena's smiling face. They had finally started dating at the fourth of July fireworks last summer. Even with everything going on, Beck and Lena had been happier than I'd ever seen them. They were really in love and I was going to do everything I could to make sure Beck got back to his girl.

"Let's go blow Kronos back into a million pieces," he grinned, carefully putting the photo away. Beck led the way through the ship's maze of hallways. He stopped at a metal door. **Engine room** he mouthed. Beck pulled some chain cutters from his bag and broke the lock. I cast the muffliato charm around us so the monsters wouldn't hear the breaking metal. We dashed inside the room and Percy quietly shut the door. A telkhine was hunched over a control panel. I stabbed him with Mov before he even knew we were there. Beckendorf tossed my brother and me a couple jars of greek fire. I summoned duct tape from my bracelet. Percy and I worked on attaching the jars of liquid fire to the consols. Beck taped his jars to the turbines.

I looked up as I heard monsters coming down the steps. "How much longer?" I asked.

"Ten minutes at least. I need to wire the receiver and prime the charges."

"I'll distract them," said Percy. "Nina, you stay and help Beckendorf."

"Good luck," I said, hugging my brother for what I hoped wouldn't be the last time. Percy ran out the door and slammed it shut. I helped Beckendorf wire everything up, using magic to speed along the process. I just did what he told me. I had no idea what he was doing. Eventually, he looked up and nodded at me. We ran out of the room. We made it to the galley when we heard people coming. We rushed inside and grabbed a bunch of cans, stuffing them in Beck's now empty bag. We rushed out and started racing towards the engine room. The monsters surrounded us.

Beck and I stood back to back. Beckendorf was using a hammer as a weapon and I had Mov out. The monsters surrounded us. A demigod with a black eye patch was in front of me. Beck and I fought hard. At the end of the fight, about half the monsters were disintegrated at our feet. The demigod had my arm twisted behind my back and my own knife at my throat. That was seriously messed up. Beckendorf was being held between two Laistrygonian giants. Most of his shirt had been ripped off and his muscular, dark skin was soaked in sweat. I had three scratches across my stomach and my shirt had torn off below my navel. "Have you set the explosives?" the demigod asked.

"No, we were heading to do that when you ambushed us. They're in my bag," Beckendorf replied coolly. Thank the gods the demigod was too dumb to check. He dragged us up to the top deck.

"Nakamura!" I heard a cold voice call.

"Success, my lord," the demigod said as he and the giants dragged Beckendorf and me forwards. Percy was leaning against the rail., clutching his arm. He looked at us imploringly and I nodded. He smiled slightly before his face turned serious again. "We found them just as we were told."

"We found them amidships," one of the giants added, "trying to sneak to the engine room. Can we eat them now?"

"Soon," said Kronos, scowling at the demigod holding me. "Are you sure they didn't set the explosives?"

"They were going toward the engine room, my lord."

"How do you know that?"

"Er..." Ethan let his grip on my knife loosen slightly. "They were heading in that direction, and the boy told us. His bag is still filled with explosives."

"Open his bag." The two giants ripped the bag away from Beckendorf. It was dumped upside down and the cans of peaches rolled out. "Did you, perhaps, send someone to actually CHECK THE ENGINE ROOM?" The demigod scrambled back in terror, dropping me and my knife. I subtly picked it up and slipped it into my sheath. "You'll have to excuse my incompetent help, Perseus and Christina Jackson. But it doesn't matter. We have you now. We've known you were coming for weeks. We have a spy." Kronos held up a little silver bracelet with a scythe charm. The Titan Lord's symbol. It was a communication device. "You can't count on friends. They will always let you down. Luke learned that lesson the hard way. Now, drop your sword and surrender to me, Percy Jackson, or your friend and sister die."

**Go **I mouthed to my brother. He shook his head. Beckendorf glared at him. **I love you **Percy mouthed before jumping off the side of the ship. Before Beckendorf could push the button on the side of his watch, I lunged at him, wrapping my arms around his waist. We went over the side of the boat. Beck hit the button and we were blasted away from the ship. We landed hard in the water. Beckendorf was unconscious and it took everything I had to keep us afloat. I was drifting in and out of consciousness.

A melody was playing softly through the warm summer air. I looked up and saw a fiery red bird. "Siria," I gasped, recognizing Apollo's familiar. The phoenix trilled and swooped down. I grabbed ahold of her tail feathers and gripped Beck's hand with my other one. Siria pulled us out of the water. The sun was rising behind us as Siria flew us towards what I'm hoping was Long Island.

Beckendorf woke up by the time we landed. We were on the beach of Camp Half-Blood. Everyone who was there ran towards us. Lav and Vati hugged me so tightly I couldn't breath. "There's a counselor's meeting. Everyone thinks you two are dead. When Percy came back without you guys...Beck, I suggest you get to the meeting right now...Lena's a mess..." gasped Vati and Lav together. Beckendorf and I ran off to the meeting. As we were running down the halls of the Big House, Clarisse was thumping her way in the other direction. When she saw us, her eyes lit up a little.

"Glad you two aren't dead. Now, get in there and go cheer people up!" I grinned at me friend as she continued her way out of the Big House. Beck and I ran into the rec room. Everyone was there. Michael Yew had replaced Lee as head of the Apollo cabin. He smiled when he saw us, but didn't point us out. Jake Mason was sitting in Beckendorf's place. Silena was sitting with her back to us, as was my brother. Beck walked up behind Silena and scooped her out of her chair. He spun her around and she squealed.

Lena looked up at him. "Charlie?" she asked, confused.

"'Sup, Lena." Silena through her arms around and kissed him hard. Beck fell back against the wall, his hands at his girlfriend's waist. Percy had spun around and stood up when he saw me. He wrapped me in a hug and I gently hugged him back. Everyone came up to greet us and Jake left after hugging his half brother. The rest of us sat down to hear the Great Prophecy.

"Two half-bloods of the eldest dogs..."

"Er, Percy?" Annabeth interrupted. "That says gods. Not dogs."

"Oh, right. Two half-bloods of the eldest gods...shall reach 15 against all odds...And see the world in endless sleep, The hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap. A single choice shall...shall end his days. Olympus to preserve or raze." The room went silent.

"Raise is good, isn't it?" asked Connor Stoll.

"Not raise," Lena said. "R-a-z-e means destroy."

Connor leaned back against his chair and ran his fingers through his hair. I leaned against my brother and he wrapped me in a hug. Silena was clinging to Beckendorf like he was her lifeline. "We have other problems. We've got a spy," said Percy. Silena whimpered and hid her face in Beck's shirt. I looked at him curiously and he shrugged his shoulders.

Everyone started arguing about who the spy could be. It was really annoying. THey were all blaming each other. I jumped up. "Everyone shut the Hades up! We are in the fight of our life and you're all acting like little kids!" Everyone blushed and looked down. I sat back down.

"She's right," Pollux said. "Accusing each other doesn't help. We need to keep our eyes open for a silver necklace with a scythe charm. If Kronos had one, the spy probably does too."

Everyone agreed and Chiron set up some mist image. A giant monster appeared on the screen. It was covered in ash and smoke so I couldn't make out any features. It appeared to be vaguely humanoid. It was so tall, it could have used the Chrysler building as a baseball bat. "Typhon," I gasped. I waited for Chiron to say 'No, that's Joe. He's coming to rip Kronos into a million pieces and throw him back in Tartarus. I had no such luck. He just nodded. I looked at Percy and he nodded. We need to take the Curse.


	55. Chapter 54: Curse

**Sorry about the delay. There was a birthday party I had to attend. The Curse of Achilles is in this chapter. Thank you to Artemis Lovegood, QuillMist9674, ZoeyMarieSnape, sassiecassie218,percyjacksonfan135, Nymphadora Jackson, and the guest reviewer for your reviews. To percyjacksonfan135, Nina is a muggleborn like Hermione. In case anyone doesn't know, Mercury is Hermes' Roman form. **

Chapter Fifty Four: The Curse

Percy and I went to the arena to see Mrs. O'Leary, the only friendly hellhound. We played fetch with her. We took the hellhound for a walk. She bounded far ahead of us. When we finally tracked her down, she was in the clearing where the Council of Cloven Elders had put Grover on trial. It looked downright dead. The grass was yellow and the thrones made of flowers had lost all their leaves. In the middle of the clearing stood, Juniper the wood nymph, Nico, and the satyr I recognized as Leneus. Mrs. O'Leary was sniffing Juniper. Juniper yelped and said, "Oh no, you mutt, I know what dogs do to trees like me!"

I'll admit, that sounded pretty funny. "I'll walk the dog," Nico offered. He whistled and Mrs. O'Leary followed him happily. Juniper and Leneus started to argue about Grover. He had disappeared. Why didn't anyone tell me? Percy yelled at Leneus a bit about leading the satyrs into battle instead of letting Grover do all the work. Wow, I never pictured sweet, little, innocent Grover as a war leader. Juniper and Leneus left as Mrs. O'Leary returned with Nico.

"Have you decided yet," my baby cousin asked.

"What do we need to do first?" I grinned.

"First, we need to ask your mom for permission." Percy and I stared at him, open-mouthed. Did an all powerful 12 year old son of Hades say we needed Sally's permission? "Only two people have been know to take the Curse and survive. Both had their mother's permission. Now do your Mage stuff and travel to Manhattan!" Nico faded into the shadows.

"What the Hades," sighed Percy before mist consumed him. I followed my brother. We appeared in our apartment with a loud clunk. Whoops. Sally and Paul rushed into the room. Paul was holding a baseball bat. He dropped it when he saw it was us and he and Sally plopped down on a couch. We told the adults about Typhon and they gasped. We also told them about the plan to take the curse.

"Percy, Christina, it's dangerous. Even for you two." Sally seemed genuinely worried about me for once. Over the past year, she had become a lot nicer to me. I still think she's trying to get something out of it.

"Mom," started Percy. "We know that we could die. Nico explained that. But if we don't try-"

"We'll all die," Nico carried on from there. "Mrs. Blofis, we don't stand a chance against an invasion and there will be an invasion. Percy and Nina need your blessing to do this. This has only been done successfully twice. Both times the mother had to be willing to allow her child, or in this case children, take the risk."

"You want me to bless this, Percy, Nina, please." I know, I know, I should be stressing out right about now, but I couldn't get over the fact that Sally Jackson had called me Nina, instead of girl or Christina like she's been doing lately. "This is crazy!"

"Sally, I mean Mom, please! We can't do this without you!" I thought maybe calling her mom instead of Sally or mother might help at least a little. Paul whispered something in her ear and she seemed to relent.

"Percy, Nina, I give you my blessing."

"It's time," said Nico anxiously.

Sally asked us to send her a sign that we survived. She actually said both of us. Wow, she really does care. She hugged Percy before turning to me. We stood there awkwardly, staring at the ground. "Nina," my mother broke the silence, "I know we've had our differences in the past, but you are my daughter and eldest child." Paul, Percy, and Nico turned around to give us some privacy. "And I'm sorry it's taken me this long to realize it, but Nina, I love you!" Sally launched herself at me and I awkwardly rubbed her back. I had been expecting her to have pretended to be nice to me all this time and then say that she wanted me to be extra sure to die."

"I can't say the same to you, Sal-I mean Mom. But, you are my mother and I definitely care about you, no matter what."

"Try not to die, Nina."

"I make no promises." Sal-Mom, I've got to remember that, slapped me on the back of my head and I grinned sheepishly at her. She rolled her eyes and told the boys they could turn back around. We all said our goodbyes and Nico told us where to travel to next, Central Park.

We landed in front of a pile of boulders. "Is this-" I started to say.

"The Door of Orpheus," Nico nodded. I ran a finger of the rough rocks. Someone needed to play some music. "Who wants to sing?" I stared at the door and was about to start singing when my voice abandoned me. I was a little too stressed about this. Percy and Nico looked at me and I shrugged. I tried to sing again, but my voice still wouldn't come to me. I had a feeling this was more than just stress levels, I think this was some god messing with us. Really? We're trying to save you and you delay us?

"I have an idea," said Percy.

"Run for the hills," I said sarcastically.

Percy rolled his eyes and shouted, "Grover!" Nothing happened. Nico and I looked at my brother with cocked eyebrows. He blushed and closed his eyes. He was using his empathy link! Amazing, an intelligent plan thought up by my brother. Percy concentrated for a few minutes and then almost fell over.

Nico caught him. "What happened?"

"I got through," Percy gasped. "He's...yeah. He's on his way."

A minute later, Grover fell out of the trees. "You okay, capra?"

"Oh, I'm fine and what did you just call me?"

"A goat, my dear satiro, a goat. Satiro means satyr by the way. You got your reed pipes on you by any chance?"

"Yup, never go anywhere without them"

We asked Grover where he'd been. He started rambling about some guy who knocked him out. Grover said the man's aura was powerful and that he was probably a minor god. Nico sighed. "You're lucky you ever woke up. Grover, you met Morpheus, the god of dreams." Grover then began to ramble about how he had been missing for two months.

Percy interrupted Grover's mini monologue and told him about our plan. Grover agreed, albeit reluctantly, to open the Door of Orpheus. He played some Nirvana tune that split the rocks. Grover ran off to rally the nature spirits and I.M. his girlfriend. Percy, Nico, and I walked slowly down the path that the door had opened up.

The path let us off on the banks of the River Styx. Percy and I walked up to the water's edge. "So we just jump in?" asked Percy.

"No," Nico shook his head. "First you need to prepare your bodies. Otherwise the river will rip you apart. There is only one way to stay anchored to your mortal part. You need to..." He was interrupted by a zombie dressed in Ancient Greek armor. At first, I didn't recognize the hero, but then I saw his heel. An arrow was sticking out the back.

"Achilles," Percy and I whispered together.

Zombie-Achilles nodded. "I warned the other not to follow in my path. Now I shall warn you." Makes sense, we were about to take the Curse of Achilles. Our skin would become as hard as diamond except for one spot of our choosing. "Do not do this, heroes. You shall gain an arrogance that will get you killed."

"If I die, I die," I said. "It's either me or the entire world. I'll risk dying if it means everyone else gets a chance at a happy life."

"Let the gods witness I tried," Achilles sighed. He told us how to prepare ourselves. First, we had to chose a mortal point. I chose a spot right underneath my right ear. No one would think to cut me there. The tiniest scratch there, and I'm dead. Achilles vanished. I looked at Percy and grabbed his hand. I imagined a strong rope connected to the bank, keeping me anchored to the shoreline. Percy nodded to show he was ready and we jumped together.

It was a thousand times worse than the cruciatus. I couldn't sense anything but pain. I felt myself being pulled apart by the water. I wanted to scream, but I couldn't. I focused on my mortal point. "You aren't getting away from me that easily, Sparkles," said a familiar voice. I looked up and saw Apollo grinning down at me. He offered me his hand and I took it. He pulled me up out of the water. I landed on the shore, coughing and spluttering.

Percy appeared on the shore next to me. His skin was bright red as if it had been burnt. I figured mine looked like that too. "Are you okay?" Nico stammered. "Oh, gods, your skin. You two are hurt!"

"We're fine, I think," I replied to my baby cousin. Nico pulled us both to our feet. "Is your dad out helping with Typhon?" I asked.

Nico shook his head. "No, he, Demeter, and Persephone are all cooped up down here in the Underworld. Zeus said he didn't want or need my dad's help. That is a total lie. Lady Artemis, Lord Apollo, Lady Aphrodite, and Lord Hermes have all I. him and begged for help. He would, but he can't go directly against Zeus' orders."

"Wait, Zeus said they couldn't help the gods, right?" Nico nodded, looking very confused. "Well, convince him to help the demigods then. That wouldn't be directly going against Zeus' orders because Zeus didn't say Uncle couldn't help us in Manhattan, only that he couldn't be with the gods fighting Typhon."

"Yeah, yeah I'll talk to him. He might listen. You never can tell with gods."

I laughed. "Well," said Percy, "let's go start a war." I grabbed Percy's hand and together we Mist travelled to the Empire State Building. Percy pulled out our mom's phone and called Annabeth, asking her to get the camp to Olympus. Thirty minutes later, we had an army of 40 demigods. Let's go kick some titan culo.


	56. Chapter 55: This Is War

**Thanks for the reviews percyjacksonfan135, julie662, Artemis Lovegood, emerald92, QuillMist9674, and ZoeMarieSnape. To emerald92, yeah, I'm super psyched to see the new PJO movie. The trailors were really cool! To Artemis Lovegood, Sally is actually trying to care for Nina, although I do like the ransom idea. Your story is really good and I followed and faveorited it. To julie662, during this chapter right now, the year is 2006 because Nina and Percy were born in August of 1990. The Battle of Hogwarts will happen in 2-3 years and this chapter is the Last Olympian. To percyjacksonfan135, no, the blood quill won't be able to hurt Nina. Umbridge's reaction will be really funny:P Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Fifty Five: This is War

Chiron told us he was going to go gather allies. Hopefully he gets the Party Ponies. We all went inside we all went inside after he cantered off. The guy behind the desk asked, "School group? We're about to close up."

"No," Percy said. "600th floor."

"There is no 600th floor, kid. Move along." He noticed our weapons and still wasn't letting us up! What the Hades is his problem? Does he not know that the second titanomachy is starting right now?

"40 demigods attract an awful lot of monsters," I smirked. "You really want us hanging out in your lobby?" The guys eyes widened in fear and he handed us the key card. We went up in two groups of 20. I took the last group up and Percy took the first group up. A disco tune was playing. A disturbing image of Apollo in bell-bottom jeans and a silk shirt filled my mind. If I make it out of this alive, I'm going to make him swear on the Styx never to wear that, ever.

I looked over and saw Lav, Percy, and Annabeth talking quietly. Vati came over to me. "Where did you go? You look different, more invincible than you already did."

"Tell you later, we need to keep moving." Percy and I led the demigods to the throne room. No one was guarding it. The ophiotaurus was in one corner of the throne room. He mooed at us happily. We walked towards the center of the thrones.

"Hello, Percy and Christina Jackson. You and your friends are welcome."

Lady Hestia stood by the hearth, caring for it. "Lady Hestia," Percy and I bowed. She had come to talk to us while we were waiting for the demigods to reach Manhattan. Our friends followed our example.

"I see you went through with your plans. You both bear the Curse of Achilles." The campers began muttering amongst themselves. Percy and I nodded. "You must be careful. You gained much on your journey. You gained much in your journey. But you are still blind to the most important truth. Perhaps a glimpse is in order." My brother and I stared into Hestia's eyes. She showed us when Luke and Thalia found Annabeth. Luke gave Annabeth her knife and promised that the three of them would always be family. I had a feeling that would be important to remember.

The scene shifted. Annabeth, Thalia, and Luke were running. It looked like several days had passed. Thalia was limping on her left leg. They ran to a house. Thalia was a little iffy about Luke going in there. She said he had sworn never to go back. This was Luke's mom's house. A gold flash illuminated the clearing and a man's voice bellowed, "You should not have come home!" The vision turned off.

I looked at Hestia again and she shook her head. They had not seen the vision. "How long were we out?" Percy asked.

"You weren't ut at all," Annabeth informed us.

"You looked at Hestia for a second then collapsed," Lav added.

"Um, Lady Hestia," Percy said as we stood up, "we've got urgent business. We need to see-"

"We know what you need," a man's voice said. I would recognize it anywhere, Hermes, the man from the vision. Hermes appeared next to Hestia. The demigods all bowed to him. Hestia bowed to Hermes as well before disappearing. "Hello, Percy, Nina, my kids, and other demigods."

Hello, Lord Hermes. Hey, George. Hello, Martha," Percy and I said together.

"I am Zeus' messenger. May I take a message?" Hermes seemed to be trying not to roll his eyes.

"Connor, Travis, lead a sweep of Olympus," I ordered. I had a feeling we should be speaking in private. "Meet us back here in thirty minutes. Annabeth, Lav, Vati, you three stay with us." Connor and Travis seemed very excited to have gotten an important mission in front of their dad. He smiled at them as they led the demigods out of the room. Lav, Vati, and Annabeth walked up to stand next to Percy and me.

"My lord, Kronos is going to attack Manhattan. Typhon is a trap. My mother must have foreseen it."

"You mother," Hermes grumbled at Annabeth. "Don't get me started on your mother, young lady. She's the reason I'm here at all. Zeus didn't want anyone to leave the front line. But your mother kept pestering him nonstop, 'It's a trap, it's a diversion, blah, blah, blah.'" I willed myself not to laugh at Annabeth's face. We may be getting along a little better, but I still don't like her and she doesn't like me. We only tolerate each other. It was nice seeing her get put in her place. "She wanted to come back herself, but Zeus was not going to have his best strategist leave his side while we're battling Typhon. And so naturally he sent me to talk to you. Apollo offered, he hates fighting, but Zeus wouldn't let him come. I'm pretty sure that was just to annoy Apollo though."

"But it's a trap! Is Zeus blind?"

"Watch it with those comments girl," said Hermes as thunder rumbled. "Zeus is not blind or deaf. Zeus has left Aeolus, king of the winds, guarding Olympus from the air. No one can approach Olympus from the air without getting blasted."

"Maybe a few of you could come back," Percy suggested. Hermes shook his head sadly and got ready to leave.

"Athena said to warn you you are on your own."

"That's real helpful," I grumbled. Hermes snorted, I could tell he didn't like his half sister very much.

"You must hold Olympus by yourselves. As if I didn't know that. Why they pay her to be the wisdom goddess, I'm not sure."

Lav, Vati, and I giggled. "Anything else?" Annabeth asked, hopefully.

"Something about plan 23. She told Percy to remember the rivers. Oh, and Apollo said don't die. He was referring to his kids and you, Nina, I think. Tell my kids I would prefer it that they didn't die as well, would you?"

"Of course, my lord," I said. He nodded and flashed out just as the other demigods arrived. Lav and Vati pulled me off to the side.

"Hestia said you took the Curse of Achilles," said Vati.

"Did you and Percy bath in the River Styx?" asked Lav.

"Yeah, but that doesn't matter right now. We have a war to fight." I turned to face the demigods. Before I could say anything, Connor dragged us to the edge of Olympus. He pointed out the army of Kronos, which was surrounding Manhattan. I gulped, the worst part was that Manhattan was entirely silent. Manhattan was never silent, not even in the middle of the night! I looked through the binoculars. All the mortals down there were fast asleep. I guess Kronos had Morpheus do it. He didn't want the orals getting in his way.

"Are they dead?" asked Silena. Beckendorf was holding her hand comfortingly. A line of the Great Prophecy rang through my head.

"And see the world in endless sleep," I said out loud. "That was a line in the prophecy."

"Morpheus has put Manhattan to sleep," continued Percy. "The invasion has started. We all rushed down to the city below. We found Mrs. O'Leary pigging out on hot dogs from a hot dog cart. The owner was sleeping next to her. Annabeth rummaged around in a van and pulled out a bronze shield. What the Hades is that? She put it on the ground. The Statue of Liberty appeared on the inside of the shield. Awesome. It bent natural light to show you anywhere as long as natural light touched said place. Percy sent his hellhound familiar off to find Grover and the other nature spirits. Annabeth showed us an image of a bunch of demigods coming across the East and Hudson rivers. We saw where all the monsters were coming in.

"Alright," I tried to grin. "We're going to hold Manhattan."

"Um, Nina, Manhattan is huge," whispered Sillena.

"We have to," Percy agreed with me. "Nina and I will take care of the boats. Don't question it," he added when Michael looked like he was about to ask a question. "Michael, take Apollo's cabin to the Williamsburg bridge. Katie, take Demeter's to Brooklyn-Battery tunnel. Grow thorn bushes and poison ivy in the tunnels. Connor, take half of Hermes to the Manhattan bridge. Travis, take the other half to Brooklyn bridge."

"No stopping for looting or pillaging," I added.

"Aww," said the entire Hermes cabin. I rolled my eyes at them.

"Silena, Lav, Vati, take the Aphrodite kids to Queens-Midtown Tunnel," I continued.

"Oh my gods," giggled Drew. "Fifth avenue is so on our way! We could accessorize, and monsters,like, totally hate the smell of Givenchy."

"No," I groaned. Well...the perfume thing, if you think it'll work."

The Aphrodite girls squealed. "Don't encourage them," groaned Vati.

"The Holland tunnel is next," said Percy. "Beckendorf take your siblings. Set up traps and Greek fire. The works." Beck grinned and nodded. "The 59th street bridge. Clarisse-" Percy faltered. The Ares cabin wasn't there.

"We'll take that," Annabeth said.

"Alright," I said. "Keep in touch with cell phones."

"We don't have cell phones," Silena said. I took the one from the hot dog vendor and threw it at her.

"You do now. Okay, my mom's phone number is 212-467-8903." Everyone took out markers and pens and scribbled the number down on multiple parts of their bodies. "If you need Percy or me, pick up a random phone and call us. Use it once, drop it, then borrow another one if you have too. That should make it harder for monsters to zero in on you. And no, Travis, you cannot keep a phone no matter how nice it is." Travis pouted along with the rest of the Hermes cabin.

"Hold it you two," said Jake Mason. "You guys forgot the Lincoln Tunnel." I knew there was something I was missing. There wasn't another cabin to put there. Pollux was going with the Demeter cabin and there weren't any other cabins.

"How about you leave that to us," a girl's voice echoed from behind the campers. Thalia walked through the demigods with Padma by her side. The other Hunters followed closely behind them. "The Hunters of Artemis reporting for duty." Percy and I hugged her and Vati and Lav hugged their sister. "Hunters," Thalia ordered, "move out!" The Hunters rushed off and all the cabins went to their respective positions.

Percy and I found an awesome motorcycle. We pulled the guy off it and dragged him to the side.I climbed on behind Percy and he started the engine. He drove us to where the East River met the Hudson River. Percy and I dove in, something I don't recommend unless you're a child of Poseidon or a god, and found the spot where the two river's currents were equal. "Hey!" shouted Percy. "I heard you guys are so polluted you're embarrassed to show your faces! Is that true?"

"Bad insult, fratellino. Let me show you how it's done. Is it true that the East is more toxic but the Hudson smells worse or is it the other way around?" Percy seemed a little nervous about insulting gods, but I knew better. These were New York river gods. Their instinct would be to get in our faces. I was right.

Two giant forms appeared in front of us. The one I assumed was the East River, he seemed to radiate radiation, said, "Are you idiots trying to get yourself killed, or are you just extra stupid?"

Hudson scoffed. "You're the expert on stupid, East."

"Watch it, Hudson. Stay on your side of the island and mind your own business." The two river gods floated towards each other, ready to fight. I gotta say, it was pretty ridiculous looking.

"Hold it!" shouted Percy. "We've got bigger problems."

"Kids right," agreed East. "Let's kill him then fight." The two gods threw a whole lot of garbage at us. Percy and I raised a shield of solid water. A couple pieces got through and would have pierced my chest and Percy's head if not for the curse. The bounced right off.

"Poseidon's kids?" asked Hudson.

We nodded.

"Took a dip in the Styx?" asked East.

"Yup," I said. Wanna stop the monsters crossing your rivers so Kronos doesn't take over Olympus?"

"Why would we want to do that?" asked East.

"Zeus has never done anything for us. Poseidon tries to help us with the pollution every now and then, and Apollo warms us up everyday, but the King of Olympus does nothing for us. Why should we help him?"

"You'd also be helping Poseidon and Apollo," I said.

The two gods shook their heads. "Because I can pay you," Percy said suddenly. He took out a sand dollar. Ah..."You can each have half. In exchange, you keep the forces of Kronos away from Manhattan."

"Deal," the river gods said. They each took a half of the dollar. They snapped their fingers and I knew the monsters and demigods all just took an unplanned swim. Percy and I quickly swam to the shore. I had left the phone there. There was a voice mail from Michael. The Apollo cabin needed help.

Percy rushed us to the Williamsburg bridge. The minotaur was there. "I thought you killed him," I whispered to my brother.

"I did. I was hoping he'd stay dead for a few centuries," my brother whispered back. The Apollo campers were hidden behind cars, shooting arrows at the monsters while staying out of harms reach. They, like their father, weren't big fighters. Michael ran up to us.

"Glad you could join us, where are the other reinforcements?"

"We're it," I sighed.

"Than we're toast," he groaned. Michael drew an arrow and fired it at the monsters. It let out a piercing wail that caused at least 10 of the 100 monsters to disintegrate. "That was my last sonic arrow."

"A gift from your dad?" Percy asked. "God of music?"

Michael grinned wickedly. "Mad music can be bad for you. Unfortunately, it doesn't always kill." I grinned. We told Michael to set up defenses. He nodded and ran back to his siblings. Percy and I walked up the bridge in plain sight, to distract the monsters. The minotaur attacked Percy and I took on the rest. Percy easily killed the minotaur. He helped me kill the rest. When they retreated, only about 20 of them were left alive. Apollo's campers and my brother and I went after them, that is until we saw them join another army. Percy and I told them to retreat as the army surged forward. Kronos advanced leisurely after his men.

The demigod with an eyepatch rode up to us on his skeletal horse. I was too busy fighting monsters to engage him in contact. He rode up behind my brother who didn't seem to notice him. The demigod drew a knife and tried to stab my brother in his lower back. I lunged forward and let the knife deflect off my stomach. I don't know why, but I felt the need to protect Percy. Kronos approached us as Percy helped me to my feet. He jumped down from his horse and stood in front of us. He banged the butt of his scythe down on the bridge. A wave of pure force blasted Percy and me back. The entire bridge collapsed in front of us. Kronos' army was on one side and the Apollo cabin, Percy, and me were on the other.

I looked around. Everyone was there, everyone except Michael. I began sifting through the rubble, desperately looking for my friend. Before I could get to far, my mom's phone rang. It was Silena. Lav was hurt! They were in Plaza Hotel. The Apollo campers rushed back with my brother and me. Beckendorf led us to the terrace with Will Solace. Lena was bandaging the wound. She had been stabbed by a poison dagger. Will removed the bandage and began cleaning the wound out with nectar. Lav gasped and grabbed Percy's hand. It turned purple with the force she was squeezing it with. Percy didn't seem to mind. As Will was working, he gave me a list of things he needed. I summoned them from the healing charm on my bracelet.

Silena jumped up. She had a determined look on her face. "I'm going to go get the Ares campers, and Chris, he stayed to try and convince Clarisse to come. I'll bring Blackjack and Silvermist too!" Lena rushed out of the room.

"What brought that along?" I asked. Percy, Will, and Lav shrugged. Will and I left to give Lav and Percy some private time. I went to go talk to Grover who had just arrived with Mrs. O'Leary. He told me about the nature spirit that were mobilized. Thalia came over to us and told us that a golden Titan was also in the army. He was at the Jersey Shore. After filling us in, Thalia ordered me to go to bed. I glared at her but went into a bedroom and almost instantly fell asleep. I had a dream. Nico was watching a vision which I watched along with him.

A young Nico and Bianca di Angelo were playing in a hotel lobby. Hades was talking to a woman that could only be my cousins' mother in rapid Italian. They were talking about the Great Prophecy and how they needed to protect Nico and Bianca. Maria, the woman, refused to raise them in the Underworld. Maria stood up to go get her purse from the room the family was staying in. Hades tensed. The children did as well, as if they sensed whatever it was their father sensed.

"No!" Hades shouted. He only had time to erect a wall of black energy around his kids when lightning struck the hotel. When the smoke cleared, I saw Hades holding the broken form of Maria di Angelo. Dead bodies were strewn all over the place throughout the rubble. Zeus had just killed so many innocent people to get at two innocent children. My hatred for my uncle grew even more, something I didn't know was possible. Hades looked ready to turn into his true form, which would vaporize his children. At the last second, he regained control. Alecto appeared and Hades told her to wash the children's minds in the River Lethe and place them in the Lotus Hotel and Casino. The vision faded and I woke up.

Thalia was standing over me. She informed me how the Titan Prometheus had spoken with my brother and given him Pandora's Pithos. It wasn't a box like t said in the myth. It was a pithos, a clay jar. I nodded. "How many were lost?" I asked.

"6 out of the 40 demigods," Thalia replied sadly. "We lost 3 Hunters. Vati and Padma are okay if that's what you're trying to ask."

I smiled at her and she left. We still had another hour before sunset, when the battle would restart. I summoned my guitar and put up a silencing charm on the room so I wouldn't wake anyone up.

A warning to the people,

The good and the evil,

This is war.

To the soldier, the civilian,

The martyr, the victim,

This is war.

It's the moment of truth, and the moment to lie,

The moment to live and the moment to die,

The moment to fight, the moment to fight

To fight, to fight, to fight!

To the right, To the left

We will fight to the death!

To the edge of the earth

It's a brave new world

From the last to the first

To the right, To the left

We will fight to the death!

To the edge of the earth

It's a brave new world

It's a brave new world!

A warning to the prophet,

The liar, the honest,

This is war.

To the leader, the pariah,

The victor, the messiah,

This is war.

It's the moment of truth, and the moment to lie,

The moment to live and the moment to die,

The moment to fight, the moment to fight,

To fight, to fight, to fight!

To the right, To the left

We will fight to the death!

To the edge of the earth

It's a brave new world

From the last to the first

To the right, To the left

We will fight to the death!

To the edge of the earth

It's a brave new world

It's a brave new world

It's a brave new world!

I do believe in the light

Raise your hands into the sky

The fight is done, the war is won

Lift your hands toward the sun

Toward the sun

Toward the sun

Toward the sun

The war is won

To the right, To the left

We will fight to the death!

To the edge of the earth

It's a brave new world

From the last to the first

To the right, To the left

We will fight to the death!

To the edge of the earth

It's a brave new world

It's a brave new world

It's a brave new world!

A brave new world

The war is won

The war is won

A brave new world


	57. Chapter 56: Fight On

**Here's chapter 56. Thanks for the reviews QuillMist9674, meera huang, lunarue.13, Nichole315, percyjacksonfan135, and ZoeyMarieSnape. To meera huang, the idea of elemental mages has been used in multiple PJO and HP fics I've read. To lunarue.13, Sirius will die and Nina will be going with Harry to the Department of Mysteries. Nina won't tell Apollo or Poseidon about the detentions and she will only get one because the blood quill won't work on her. Enjoy!**

Chapter Fifty Six: Fight On

Our army converged in Central Park. We were waiting for the golden Titan. As soon as I saw him, I knew who he was, Hyperion, Titan of light. Grover stood next to me, the satyrs were all gathered behind him. A fat one pushed his way through the group. "Leneus?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't act so surprised. I am the leader of the Council, and you did tell me to find Grover. Well, I found him, and I'm not going to let a mere outcast lead the satyrs without my help!" Grover made gagging motions behind Leneus' back and I rolled my eyes at him. The Athena cabin was staying with Percy as were the Hunters and Thalia. I was going with Lav, Vati, and the rest of the Aphrodite cabin to the Lincoln Tunnel. The other cabins went elsewhere.

I summoned my bow and quiver from my charm bracelet. A small army came through after the sun had completely set. How is the sun even rising and setting if Apollo can't drive the sun chariot?

We made quick work of the monsters. We waited for more. That had hardly been a challenge. I looked at Parvati, confused. She shrugged, not knowing what was going on. A roar echoed throughout the entire tunnel. A vampiric monster came crashing through the tunnel, stamping on cars and shoving them out of her way. Instead of legs, the woman had a thick, blood red snake demon hissed at us. I had never heard of anything like her. "What is that thing?" Lavender asked. I shrugged and exchanged my bow for my knife. Vati and Lav followed my lead.

The snake woman hissed and charged at us. We had to dive out of the way just to avoid being crushed. The monster was agile and twisted around. Her tail had caught a son of Aphrodite and was squeezing him much like a python would. He was slowly turning blue. Vati slashed downwards at the tail. It bounced of the thick scales, but it sure got the creatures attention. The tail dropped Mitchell and one of his siblings ran forward and dragged him out of the way. He was gasping for breath and it looked like the tail had crushed his arm.

The creature rounded on my friends and me. She hissed and lunged. I rolled out of the way and slashed Mov upwards. The monster dodged it and slithered towards Lav. My friend jumped over the tail as it lashed out at her. She slashed at the creature with her knives. "I am Lamia," snarled the creature. "You cannot defeat the ssslayer of children!"

"Watch me," Lavender growled. I had never seen her looking so fierce. Her magic was glowing around her. She slashed and hacked at Lamia and the creature recoiled. She tried to slither away but was too late. Lav swiped both her knives across Lamia's chest and she turned into dust, a few red scales were all that remained.

I picked them up and handed them to my friend. "To the victor goes the spoils," I grinned. Lav smiled at me and carefully put the 5 scales in her pocket.

"Thanks, Nina!" We turned back to keep watch over the Lincoln waited for about an hour with no signs of any monsters. I looked at my watch, it was almost one in the morning. I sheathed Mov and sat down on the hood of a Honda. Lav and Vati had resorted to playing charades. I was about to join them, when a rumbling sound thundered through the tunnel. Everyone jumped to attention. A huge army of monsters surged forwards. They seemed shocked that we were still there. They pushed us back and out of the tunnel. We were no match for them.

"Retreat!" I yelled. All around, I noticed that all our forces were retreating. The Apollo cabin merged with us as a squadron of hellhounds chased after them. Will ran next to me.

"We're no match for them!" he shouted over the chaos. "What are we going of do?"

"Retreat back to Olympus. Hold Olympus at all costs. If the Titan's get Olympus, the war will be over and we'll have lost!" Will nodded and repeated the orders to his men. He had done a good job at taking over after Michael died. Kayla and Austin had gone back to the bridge sometime during the day and found Michael's mangled body.

We met my brother and the rest of the army at the doors to the Empire State Building. I looked around. Altogether, we had about a hundred demigods, Hunters, and nature spirits. There were about a thousand monsters. 10:1, completely unfair. A horn sounded off in the distance. Great, more enemies. But, Kronos looked just as confused as the rest of us. A bunch of arrows came flying from the left. "Yeah, baby!" someone shouted. "PARTY!"

"Centaurs!" shouted Annabeth. The army of Party Ponies erupted into our midsts. Chiron was fighting amongst his brethren. One centaur blasted a hellhound with a paintball gun. It was a hot pink. It must have been mixed with celestial bronze because pretty soon it dissolved into dust. The Titan's army fled. The centaurs galloped off to find some root beer. Mrs. O'Leary licked Chiron's face. He wasn't too happy about that.

Chiron told us about the gods fight with Typhon. Dionysus was incapacitated somewhere in the Appalachians. Hephaestus went down so hard he created a new lake in West Virginia. We were about to excuse ourselves when we saw a blue car with hoof prints on it. "Paul's Prius," Percy gasped. We rushed over to the car and sure enough, Sal-I mean Mom and Paul were in their, fast asleep. We rattled the doors, desperate to get them out. They were locked. Chiron galloped over to see what the problem was. Percy gasped when he saw something in the back seat.

"That isn't-"Chiron gasped.

"Pandora's jar," Percy said.

"But you left it in the Plaza," I said.

"It will appear when you are weakest," Chiron explained. Of course. Percy grew angry. He punched the window and it shattered. He reached across Paul's motionless body and shifted the gear into neutral. A bunch of demigods helped us push the car out of the way. When we got back, a helicopter was landing. Annabeth climbed out of it followed by a very sick looking Rachel Dare. She was literally green. She stumbled over to us and dragged Percy to the side to talk to him quietly. Lavender was glaring at her very hard. Vati and I were trying not to giggle at our friend's obvious jealousy.

Chiron cantered up to me. "Sleep, child. You may be invulnerable in battle, but that only makes your body tire faster. I remember Achilles. Whenever he wasn't fighting, he was sleeping. There are bunks set up in Olympus. Lavender, Parvati, make sure your friend actually sleeps.

I had a demigod dream. I was outside the U.N. complex with Kronos and the one-eyed demigod, Ethan Nakamura. Kronos was telling Ethan to release the drakon. A drakon we couldn't beat. Kronos spoke of a prophecy telling that only a child of Ares could beat the drakon. We were fresh out of those. My eyes snapped open and I sat up. Lav and Vati were on the floor next to me. I shook them awake and told them my dream. Soon, we had all the demigods awake and preparing to fight a drakon.

We rushed outside. A roar echoed through the silent streets of my home. A shadow blotted out the sun and I saw a drakon slithering down the side of a skyscraper. Drakons are like giant basilisks. There gaze can paralyze you as in the oh-my-gods-that- big-snake-is- going-to-eat-me type of paralysis. They're twice as big as a basilisk and twice as poisonous. The also spit acid. I'm not sure which part is worse. The things teeth were as big as me. The enemy army was forming ranks behind the drakon. Oh great, could this day get any better?

Percy, Mrs. O'Leary, and I took the drakon. Percy managed to stab its left eye out. I hacked at the drakon, trying to break its skin. The scales were too thick. I pulled back and rounded over to where Percy was trying to stab its other eye. Mrs. O'Leary was climbing up the giant snake's back. She was thrown off the serpent's head and into the side of the Empire State Building. A rumbling filled the air as Percy and I started to retreat back to the doors. Chariot wheels were heading our way. A girl's voice yelled, "Ares!" I would recognize that voice anywhere, it was Silena! SIlena was in the lead chariot, dressed in Clarisse's armor. She tricked them, a truly Hermes move.

Six of the chariots charged the monsters army. The other six, including Lena's, charged the drakon. Two chariots went off course when the drakon's eyes paralyzed the drivers. The other four kept charging. The chariots gave our army new hope. They began to fight with renewed vigor. The Ares campers threw javelins at the drakon. It got a mouthful of them. We watched in awe as the 12 Ares warriors fought the drakon. Then, things started to go wrong.

One camper got swallowed whole by the drakon. Another was knocked to the side. He didn't get back up. A third got a spray of poison to her back, and she retreated in a panic, yanking her armor off. The poison was already seeping through to her skin. Silena charged the creature straight on. It shot poison into her face. She shrieked as she fell. Beckendorf must have recognized her voice as well because he shoved his way through the monsters to his girlfriends side. I ran forward to cover him as he picked up Silena and rushed her out of there.

Percy, the rest of the Ares cabin, and I took on the drakon, dodging its poison and acid spit. We couldn't hurt the thing. At the edge of my vision, I saw a flying chariot land behind the drakon. The drivers voice was shaking as she cried, "NO! Curse you, WHY?" Clarisse and Chris ran over from the chariot. They must have seen Silena. Clarisse grabbed her spear that Lena had dropped.

My friend looked up at the drakon with absolute hate. The monster struck, but she leaped aside. She jumped onto the creature's head. She stabbed down towards the drakon's good eye. There was so much force behind her thrust, the shaft shattered. Electricity arced throughout the creature's head causing its whole body to shudder. Smoke billowed out of the drakon's mouth and it fell to the ground as its flesh dissolved. Clarisse jumped off the head before it had finished its descent and raced towards Beck and Lena, who were situated at the entrance to Olympus. Percy, Chris, and I followed close behind her.

Vati and Lav were each holding one of their sister's hands, tears pouring down their cheeks. Beck had Lena's head in his lap and was dabbing nectar on the burns. Luckily, they had gotten the helmet off fast enough so she wouldn't die from her injuries. Lena took her hands away from her sisters as we approached. She tried to sit up, but Beck pushed her back down.

"What were you thinking?" Clarisse demanded once she was sure her best friend wouldn't die.

"Wouldn't...listen. Cabin would...only follow you."

"So you stole my armor. You waited until Chris and I went out on patrol; you stole my armor and pretended to be me." Clarisse turned to glare at her siblings who had run after us. "And NONE of you noticed?" They looked very sheepish.

"Don't blame them," Lena choked. "They wanted to believe I was you."

"You stupid Aphrodite girl. You charged a drakon? Why?"

"All my fault." Tears were pouring from SIlena's eyes. Beckendorf pulled her into a hug. ""The drakon, you almost dying, Charlie, Nina, Percy...camp endangered-"

"Stop it!" Clarisse demanded. "That's not true."

Silena pulled something from her pocket and opened her hand for us all to see. A silver bracelet with a scythe charm was resting on her palm.

"You were the spy," I whispered softly.

More tears ran down Silena's cheeks. "Before...before i liked CHarlie, Luke was nice to me. He was so...charming. Handsome." Beckendorf made a face at her words and Lav slapped him upside the head. "Later, I wanted to stop helping him, but he threatened to tell. He promised...he promised I was saving lives. Fewer people would get hurt. He told me he wouldn't hurt...Charlie. He lied to me."

Clarisse scowled and told her cabin mates to go help the centaurs. They were quick to follow the real Clarisse's orders. "You're a hero," Beckendorf whispered in Lena's ear. "Without you, we'd all be dead. C'mon, let's get you inside." Beck picked up Lena and ran into the lobby of the Empire State Building. The rest of us rejoined the battle. Clarisse and her siblings charged into the Titan army. They even inspired the centaurs to rally. Clarisse took a grappling hook and looped it through the drakon's eye sockets. She tied it to her chariot and drove towards the monsters. A red aura flickered around her, the blessing of Ares. For the moment, Clarisse was even more invincible than me. The enemy retreated and Clarisse drove in circles around 5th avenue. Chris offered to stay outside and watch over her. The rest of us ran into the lobby where we were setting up final defenses.

Percy had a mental conversation with Mrs. O'Leary and she vanished into the shadows. I ran over to Grover who was kneeling over Leneus. Leneus' lips were blue, and I wasn't sure if he saw us. There was a broken spear lodged in his stomach and both his goat legs were broken. "Grover?" he murmured.

"I'm here, Leneus," Grover said, holding back tears.

"Did...did we win?"

"Um...yes," Grover lied. "Thanks to you, Leneus. We drove the enemy away." This seemed to make Leneus happier.

"Told you. True leader. True..." The old satyr's eyes closed. I'll admit, I cried a little. Grover put his hand on Leneus' forehead and muttered something. Leneus melted until all that was left of him was a sapling in a pile of soil.

"A laurel," Grover smiled sadly. "Oh, that lucky old goat. He really proved himself out there." I nodded and helped Grover stand. He gathered the laurel sapling in his hands and went to the elevator to plant Leneus on Olympus. I followed closely behind him.

Olympus looked depressing. Grover was about to head to the Olympus gardens, but I shook my head and dragged him in the other direction. "I know a special place we can plant him." I led Grover to Apollo's personal gardens. There was a ring of delilahs that Apollo and I had planted together a year ago when I visited him. The center was empty.

"I don't know, Nina. I don't know which god this garden belongs to, and some of them can get pretty testy."

"Relax, Grover. This is Apollo's personal garden. Besides, this is my flower bed. There's nothing in the center. Go ahead." Grover looked at me nervously for a second before planting the sapling in the middle of my delilahs. We continued up to the throne room. Percy met up with us on our way there. We passed a lot of injured demigods. Will was covering one with the burial shroud of his cabin. I didn't want to know who was under it. "You look great," I told one camper. He grimaced at me.

"You'll be up and fighting in no time!" Percy told another.

"Leneus got turned into a shrub!" Grover told a groaning satyr. We looked at him and he shrugged. "It may have been sad watching him die, but I still don't like him." I slapped him for that comment. We passed Pollux who was propped up against a tree.

"I can still fight with my other hand," he groaned.

Percy seemed to remember something and said, "No. You've done enough. I want you to stay here and help with the wounded."

"But-"

"Promise me to stay safe. Okay? Personal favor."

He frowned but nodded. I don't blame him. Percy and him were cool and all, but they weren't close or anything. Pollux looked at me, confused, but I just shrugged. I was nearly as confused as him. We ran the rest of the way to Olympus. Rachel was there, as was Hestia. Rachel was holding Pandora's pithos. Percy made her give it back, not liking the look in her eyes. Grover went to scout out some extra supplies and Percy and I dragged Rachel over to Hestia.

"Getting colder. Harder to keep the fire going," the goddess murmured. She focused on Rachel. "Hello, my dear. You've come to our hearth at last."

"You've been expecting me?" Rachel asked, shocked.

"To claim your place at the hearth," Hestia continued, ignoring Rachel's question, "you must let go of your distractions. It is the only way you will survive."

"I...I understand," Rachel nodded. She turned to Percy. The amusement of her basically dumping my brother mixed with all the stress had me laughing my head off. Percy glared at me as Rachel left the throne room.

Percy looked at Pandora's pithos. I could see that he really wanted to open it. Grover came back into the room. "Um, should I leave again?" I shook my head and watched Percy. Percy walked up to Hestia.

"Hestia, I give this to you as an offering."

The goddess cocked her head. "I am the least of the gods. Why would you trust me with this?"

"You're the last Olympian. And the most important."

"And why is that, Percy Jackson?"

"Because Hope survives best at the hearth, and Hope is all we have left. Guard it for me, and I won't be tempted to give up again."

Lady Hestia took the pithos. The hearth glowed a little brighter. "Well done, Percy Jackson. May the gods bless you."

"We're about to find out," I said, looking up at the thrones of the gods. I walked over to my dad's. Percy and Grover lifted me up. When I was sitting, I reached over and pulled Percy up while Grover lifted him up from the ground. Grover looked really uneasy about us sitting up here. The throne began to rumble. I felt like my mind was going to explode!

"WHO DARES-" The voice stopped abruptly and the anger retreated. I officially have the worst migraine ever. "Percy, Christina," our dad's voice was still very angry. "What-exactly-are you doing on my throne?"

"Sorry Papa," I said. "We needed to get your attention."

"This was a very dangerous thing to do. Even for you two. If I hadn't looked before I blasted, you would now be a puddle of sea water."

"We're sorry," Percy repeated. "Listen, things are rough up here." Together, Percy and I told Dad everything that was going on.

"Children, what you ask is impossible."

"Dad, Kronos sent an army against you on purpose. He wants to divide you from the other gods because he knows you could tip the scales," Percy said.

"Be that as it may, he attacks my home."

"We're at your home, Olympus," I complained.

Thunder shook the throne room. Visions went through my mind of fights going on under the sea. "Is Tyson okay?" I asked as I saw five cyclopes get blasted to dust by a giant squid.

"He's fine. Doing much better than I expected. Though 'peanut butter' is a strange battle cry."

"You let him fight?" Percy asked.

"Stop changing the subject! You realize what you are asking me to do? My palace will be destroyed."

"And Olympus might be saved," I added.

"Very well! It shall be as you say. But my children, pray this works."

"We are praying. We're talking to you, right?" Percy and I said in unison.

"Oh...yes. Good point. Amphitrite-incoming!" An explosion shattered our connection. Percy and I slipped off the throne.

"Are you guys okay?" Grover asked nervously. "You turned pale and...you started smoking."

Percy and I looked at our arms in shock to see that yes, we did start smoking. The doors slammed open and Thalia burst into the room. "You've got to get down there. The enemy is advancing and Kronos is leading them." We all looked at each other before running from the throne room.


	58. Chapter 57: The War Is Won

**Here's the last chapter of Last Olympian. I got my first flame yesterday. I'm just going to say this right now to all the flamers. If you're going to flame a story and don't do it as a guest. At least show a little respect and let the author know who's flaming them. Oh, and if you don't like a story, don't read it. And really, you said you don't like the name. Why the Hades are you complaining about that. And I know there's nice qualities in Hermione, and I include those too. I just find a lot of bad qualities in Hermione as well. I'm glad you gave your opinion and everything, but you could at least be a little respectful. Thank you to percyjacksonfan135, juliebug1022, lunarue.13, QuillMist9674, ZoeyMarieSnape, brelee24, Artemis Lovegood, and Ishiguro Ayumu( so true by the way). To ZoeyMarieSnape, curses will be absorbed by Nina. If they cause injury, they will have no affect. Cruciatus and AK won't work. Anything else will work. Vati's arm is scarred pretty badly and there will be some comments on it. No one from Hogwarts will die. To juliebug1002, yes I did say Luna was a daughter of Apollo in the first chapter. I wanted to see who would catch on. Enjoy!**

Chapter Fifty Seven: The War Is Won

It was too late by the time we got down. Our army lay injured all across the ground. Clarisse and Chris were frozen in a block of ice. The centaurs had either all ran away or they were all disintegrated because there weren't any left. Kronos stood in front of his army, scythe in hand. The only thing between him and the entrance to the building was Chiron. Chiron had an arrow notched and pointed directly at Kronos' face. Lavender stumbled over to us, clutching her side which was bleeding heavily.

"Step aside, little son." I had almost forgotten that Chiron was a son of Kronos. It was really weird seeing Luke say that to Chiron.

"I'm afraid not," Chiron said. His voice was calm, but I could hear the anger in it. Lav, Percy, Grover, Thalia, and I were all straining to move, but our feet seemed to be super glued to the pavement. A dracaena became impatient and charged Chiron. His arrow went straight through her skull. She disintegrated on the spot. Chiron reached for another arrow, but his quiver was empty. He dropped his bow and pulled out his sword. The sword was never his favorite weapon.

Kronos chuckled and advanced towards Chiron, whose horse half skittered nervously. "You're a teacher," Kronos sneered. "Not a hero."

"Luke was a hero," Chiron retorted. "A good one, until you corrupted him."

"FOOL! You filled his head with empty promises. You said the gods cared about me!"

"Me," Chiron noted. "You said me."

Kronos seemed rather confused by that comment and in that moment Chiron struck. Unfortunately, Kronos was too quick. He knocked aside the sword and yelled, "BACK!" A blinding, white light knocked Chiron backwards into the side of a building with such a force the wall crumbled on top of him.

"NO!" screamed Annabeth. The freezing spell broke and she ran towards our teacher. The rest of us that could walk followed close behind her. "YOU!" she shouted, turning on Kronos. "To think that I...that I thought-" She drew her knife.

"Annabeth, don't." Percy tried to pull her back as ugly laughter went through the Titan army. Percy grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back. She had tears running down her face.

"I HATE you!" she screeched. I wasn't sure if she was talking to my brother or Kronos.

Kronos gave a dark chuckle. "So much spirit. I can see why Luke wanted to spare you. Unfortunately, that won't be possible." Kronos raised his scythe and Percy pulled out Riptide. Before either could strike, a piercing Arroooooooo! filled the night air.

"Mrs. O'Leary?" Percy asked. The enemy army began to part like something was forcing them too. A small dark figure stood next to my brother's huge familiar.

"Nico?" I asked.

ROWWF! Mrs. O'Leary strode forward, Mrs. O'Leary bounding ahead in front of him. "Got your message," Nico grinned as he stepped up next to me, turning to face the Titan army. "Is it too late to join the party?"

"Son of Hades," Kronos spat at the ground. "Do you love death so much you wish to experience it?"

"Your death, Gramps, would be great for me."

"I'm immortal, you foo! I have escaped Tartarus. You have no business here, and no chance to live."

Nico drew his three foot, stygian iron sword. "I don't agree." The ground rumbled and cracks appeared in the road. Thousands of deceased beings crawled out of the ground.

"HOLD YOUR GROUND!"Kronos ordered his army. "The dead are no match for us." The sky turned dark and cold and the shadows thickened. A chariot emerged from around the corner. Hades himself was driving it. Ladies Demeter and Persephone were behind him.

Hades smiled coldly. "Hello, Father. You're looking...young."

"Hades," Kronos growled. "I hope you and the ladies have come to pledge your allegiance."

"I'm afraid not, Father," Demeter growled.

"My son here convinced me that perhaps I should prioritize my list of enemies," Hades sighed. "As much as I dislike my brother, it would not do for Olympus to fall. I would miss bickering with Poseidon. And if there's one thing we agree on-it is that you were a TERRIBLE father."

"True," muttered Demeter. "No appreciation of agriculture."

"Mother!" Persephone groaned.

Hades drew his sword. "Now fight me! For today the House of Hades will be called the saviors of Olympus."

"I don't have time for this," Kronos snarled. Kronos struck the ground with his scythe. A huge force field separated Kronos, his vanguard, Lav, Thalia, Annabeth, Percy, Grover, and me from the rest of the two armies. Outside the barrier, Manhattan roared back to life. Cars started up and mortals began to wake up. Paul and my mom ran around the corner from where we had hidden there car. Hades tried to attack the barrier, but he wasn't able to get through. He ordered the army of dead warriors to attack.

Demeter waved her hand and about twenty giants turned to wheat. Persephone changed all 200 of the dracaenas' spears to sunflowers. NIco hacked and slashed his way through the monsters. Kronos ordered the monsters on the inside of the force field to deal with us while he and Ethan Nakamura went up to Olympus. We made quick work of the hyperborean giants.

I looked over to see Paul pick up a sword from a fallen warrior and stab a dracaena with it. "Paul?" Percy asked.

"Hope that was a monster," he grinned at us. "I was a Shakespearian actor in college! Picked up a little swordplay!" Mom pulled something that looked suspiciously like an umbrella out of a cop car. She pulled something on it and shot a hyperborean giant backwards into Nico's sword. It was not an umbrella, it was a shot gun. "Nice one," Paul said.

"When did you learn to fight with a shotgun!" I demanded.

"About two seconds ago, Nina. We'll be fine. Go!"

Percy looked over at the pile of rubble that was on top of Chiron. "Mrs. O'Leary, please, Chiron's under there. If anyone can dig him out, you can. FIn him! Help him!" Mrs. O'Leary barked and started of us that were inside the force field raced for the elevators.

We ran through the streets of Olympus. Fires were burning and statues had crumbled. We raced to the throne room. At the doors to the throne room, a statue of Hera fell towards Annabeth. Thalia pushed her out of the way. When the dust cleared, we found Thalia still alive with both legs stuck under the statue. "Don't just stand there," she groaned. "I'll be fine! Go!" None of us wanted to leave her, but we needed to stop Kronos. We ran after him, following his path of destruction.

When we got to the throne room, Kronos was swinging his scythe around and Ethan was standing far out of its reach. The Ophiotaurus was not making a sound and had shrunk back into its corner. Ethan noticed us first. "My lord," he warned.

Kronos turned at smirked at my brother and me. "Which one wants to go first?" I unsheathed Mov and stepped forward. Percy tried to stop me, but I shoved him back. Kronos changed his scythe back into a sword, Backbiter. Ethan engaged my brother in combat. I was forced to jump onto Hephaestus' throne which started whirring. That can't be good. I jumped over Kronos' head as electricity started arcing off the throne. One hit the Titan lord in the face and he crumpled to his knees.

Annabeth ran forward. "Luke, listen!" she pleaded. Kronos flicked his hand and she flew back into her mother's throne. I tried to charge Kronos, but he flicked his hand again and I flew back against Apollo's throne. Kronos ordered Ethan to kill my brother. Ethan seemed confused. He looked at his sword then at my brother. Ethan charged...at Kronos. Ethan swung his sword down at Kronos' neck, but the blade shattered. He fell back. A piece of his own blade had struck his stomach.

"Treason," Kronos snarled as he stood up. Kronos stomped his foot and the floor around Ethan crumbled. He fell to earth. He died a hero. Kronos and Percy began to fight. Percy was backed up against Dad's throne. Kronos slowed down time.

He showed us an image of Typhon stepping into the Hudson River. He barely sunk to mid calf. It has to happen now. Please, let it happen now. As if a miracle were occurring, a conch horn blew. The Hudson erupted with forty-foot waves. A new chariot came out of the water. My dad rode in it, glowing with a blue aura of power. "NOW MY BRETHREN! STRIKE FOR OLYMPUS!"

A legion of cyclopes rode out of the water on sharks, sea serpents, and hippocampi. Leading them was Tyson on Rainbow. Briareus, the hundred handed one, was riding on a sea serpent next to him. The cyclopes threw chains around Typhon and started dragging him down. The other gods fought with renewed vigor. Ares stabbed him in the nose. Artemis shot him in the eye. Apollo shot a volley of flaming arrows that set the monsters loincloth on fire. Zeus was pounding him with lightning. Typhon sunk and Dad opened an endless waterslide down to Tartarus. The giant disappeared. "They're on their way," Percy smirked. "You've lost." Kronos roared and charged Percy. Kronos disarmed Percy quickly.

"STOP!" Annabeth came out of nowhere. She somehow found the strength to jump in. Lav stood ready to jump in when necessary. "LUke," Annabeth tried to reason, "I understand now. You have to trust me."

"Luke Castellan is dead!" Kronos roared. "His body will burn away as I assume my true form. Lavender tried to help, but we were all frozen in our spots.

"Your mother, she saw your fate."

"Service to Kronos! This is my fate!"

"No!" Annabeth's eyes were tearing up and I couldn't help but feel bad for her. She was fighting her first friend. "That's not the end, Luke. The prophecy: she saw what you would do. It applies to you!"

"I will crush you, child!"

"You won't" Annabeth argued. Why won't she just get out of there? "You promised. You're holding Kronos back even now!" I gasped, the vision Hestia had shown Percy and me. Luke promised never to hurt Annabeth.

"LIES!" shrieked Kronos as he slammed Annabeth backwards. With his free hand, he smacked her across the face, sliding her back even farther.

"Family, Luke! You promised."

Kronos stared at the knife in Annabeth's hand. "Promise," he muttered. He gasped like he couldn't get air. "Annabeth..." It wasn't Kronos' voice, it was Luke's. Luke fell to his knees in front of Annabeth. "You're bleeding..."

"My knife." Annabeth tried to raise her dagger, but it clattered out of her hand. Percy, please..."

I found I could move again. Lavender rushed over and helped me up. She kept one hand over the wound on her side. Luke went a little closer to Annabeth. "Don't touch her," Percy snarled as he picked up the knife and knocked Backbiter from Luke's grasp.

Kronos broke through again. "Jackson..." he snarled. His whole body began to glow gold. He was assuming his true form. He gasped and became Luke again.

"He's changing. Help. He's...he's almost ready. He won't need my body anymore. Please-"

NO!" Kronos bellowed.

"The knife, Percy," Annabeth said. "Hero...cursed blade..."

"Please, Percy..." Luke gasped. "You can't..can't do it yourself. He'll break my control. He'll defend himself. Only my hand. I know where. I can...can keep him controlled. Please. No time." Percy seemed to struggle for a second before passing the blade to Luke. A hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap. I had thought that line was about Percy or me, but it wasn't. It was about Luke.

Luke unstrapped his armor under his left arm. He stabbed himself in a very hard to hit place. It wasn't deep, but he howled. Luke's entire body glowed golden. It felt like a nuclear explosion went off. My skin began to blister and my lips cracked. When the light faded, Luke lay sprawled at the edge of the hearth. "Good...blade," he croaked. His eyes were blue again. Grover helped Annabeth over to his side. Luke looked at her. "You knew. I almost killed you, but you knew..."

"Shhh." Annabeth's voice was trembling. Lav buried her face in Percy's chest. Grover held my hand. "You were a hero at the end, Luke. You'll go to Elysium." He smiled weakly at her and held up his hand. Annabeth touched his fingertips.

"Did you..." Luke coughed harshly. "Did you love me?"

Annabeth nodded as the tears began to pour again. "We can get ambrosia-" Grover tried.

"Grover," Luke gulped. "You're the bravest satyr I knew. But no. There's no healing..."

Luke turned to look at Percy and me. "Ethan. Me. All the unclaimed. Don't let it...Don't let it happen again." We nodded sadly. Luke smiled and closed his eyes. He didn't move again and Annabeth broke down.

The Olympians ran into the room, prepared for a battle. I looked directly at Hermes. He was looking at Luke in shock. "We need a shroud. A shroud for the son of Hermes."

The three fates themselves came to collect Luke's body. Hermes kissed Luke's forehead before allowing them to take his body out of the throne room. Percy held Annabeth as she sobbed. Athena didn't even try to come and comfort her daughter. Apollo rushed over to heal Annabeth and then Lavender. He then, rushed over to me and started checking me over. I kept calling his name to tell him that I wasn't hurt because of the Curse, but he kept shushing me. When he was satisfied, he pulled me into a tight hug. Percy remembered our mom's request and asked Zeus to light Olympus up purple. Zeus didn't even blink an eye at the strange request. The mortals can just wonder about what it meant, mom needed to know we were safe.

The gods began to repair the throne room. It went pretty fast with 12 all powerful beings. The rest of us went around healing injured demigods. Tyson and Briareus saved Thalia from the sallen statue. She was on crutches, but was okay otherwise. Travis and Connor told us our parents were fine before Hermes swept them away. Katie Gardner informed me that she had seen Rachel run out of the Empire State Building completely unharmed and that Chiron was being brought to camp by Mrs. O'Leary. Hades, Nico, Demeter, and Persephone entered soon after. Hades and nico were surprised by the warm welcome they received.

When Clarisse and Chris walked in, Ares clapped his daughter on the back and told her she had made him proud. Wow, he can be fatherly, who knew? Mr. D. thanked Percy for keeping his son alive, something else that shocked me. He informed us he now only had 50 years left at camp instead of 100. When the army of Poseidon marched into the throne room, Tyson pulled Percy and me into a tight hug. I could hardly breath, but it was nice to know he cares. Poseidon followed close behind his army and pulled my twin and me into an even tighter hug then Tysoon had. The Olympians gathered together for a council. Even Hades was sitting on a guest throne.

Nico sat at Hades' feet. The Stoll brothers and Chris were at their father's feet. Katie sat at Demeter's feet and Thalia went over to Artemis'. Pollux stood at Dionysus' feet and WIll was at Apollo's. Beckendorf sat in front of his father and Silena, Lav, and, Vati, whose entire right arm was wrapped in bandages, sat at their mother's. Clarisse rested at Ares' feet. Annabeth went over in front of her mother. Percy followed Dad and sat in front of his throne. I sat down between Dad's and Apollo's.

Zeus started the meeting by talking about the bravery of the gods. "As for my brothers, we are thankful-" Zeus cleared his throat. It must be painful for him to say this. I looked up at Apollo and he was biting his bottom lip, trying not to laugh at his father. "Erm, we are thankful for the aid of Hades." My uncle smirked at his youngest brother. Hades squeezed Nico's shoulders and smiled down at him. Nico looked happier than i had ever seen him.

Zeus looked like the next line pained him even more. "And of course, we must...um...thank Poseidon."

"I'm sorry, brother," my dad smirked. "What was that." Apollo bit his fist to hide his laughter at Zeus' face. I bit my lip so hard that if I hadn't taken the Curse of Achilles, it would be bleeding.

"We must thank Poseidon. Without whom...it would've been difficult-"

"Difficult?" Dad asked innocently.

"Impossible," Zeus growled. "Impossible to defeat Typhon." The rest of the gods murmured their agreement and Dad sat back in his throne, smirking at Zeus.

"Which leaves us," continued the sky king, "only the matter of thanking our young demigod children, who defended Olympus so well-even if there are a few dents in my throne." I'm not sure if he just made a really bad joke or he was angry about that. Zeus called Thalia up and told her he would assist in refilling the Hunter's ranks.

"You have done well, my lieutenant. You have made me proud, and all those Hunters who perished in my service will never be forgotten. They will achieve Elysium, I'm sure." She glared pointedly at Hades.

"All who perished fighting for the gods will be rushed to Elysium," he assured the gods. "I shall take them there myself." The rest of the gods were comforted by the fact that all their kids would go to Elysium. Thalia bowed to all the gods, including Hades and Hestia, and went back to stand by Artemis' side.

"Tyson, son of Poseidon," Zeus called. Tyson moved forward from his position with the other cyclopes. "Tyson, for your bravery in the war, and for leading the cyclopes, you are appointed a general in the army of Olympus. You shall henceforth lead your brethren into war whenever required by the gods. And you shall have a new...um...what kind of weapon would you like? A sword? An axe?"

"Stick!" Tyson said, showing our uncle his broken club.

"Very well. We will grant you a new, er, stick. The best stick that may be found."

The cyclopes cheered for him as he rejoined them. "Grover Underwood of the satyrs!" Dionysus called. Grover walked into the center of the thrones nervously. "Oh, stop chewing on your shirt. Honestly, I'm not going to blast you. For your bravery and sacrifice, blah, blah, blah, and since we have an unfortunate vacancy, the gods have seen fit to name you a member of the COuncil of Cloven Elders." Grover collapsed on the spt and Dionysus ordered some naiads to take care of him. I figured he'd be okay.

"Annabeth Chase," called Athena, "my own daughter." Annabeth stood and walked into the center of the room. "You, my daughter, have exceeded all expectations. You have used your wits, your strength, and your courage to defend this city, and our seat of power. It has come to our attention that Olympus is...well, trashed. The Titan lord did a lot of damage. We could rebuild it by magic, of course, and make it exactly how it was. But the gods feel that the city could be improved. We will take this opportunity. And you, my daughter, will design these improvements."

Annabeth was completely stunned. "My...my lady? You mean I can design whatever I want?"

"As your heart desires. Make us a city for the ages. Rise, my daughter, Architect of Olympus."

"PERSEUS AND CHRISTINA JACKSON!" our dad announced. We walked into the center of the room. "Great heroes must be rewarded. Is there anyone here denying that my twins are deserving?" Not a single god protested. I wonder what's going on."

"The council agrees," said Zeus. "Percy and Christina Jackson, you shall each have one gift from the gods."

"Any gift?" Percy asked.

"I know what you two will ask. The greatest gift of all. Yes, if you want it, it shall be yours. The gods have not bestowed this gift on a mortal hero in centuries, but, Perseus and Christina Jackson-if you wish it-you shall be made gods. Immortal. Undying. You shall serve as your father's lieutenant, Perseus, and you as Apollos, Christina."

"Um...a god?" Percy asked.

"Apparently dimwitted gods, but yes. I will have to put up with you forever."

"Hmm," mused Ares. "Then I will have all eternity to smash them to a pulp and they'll just keep coming back."

I glanced back. Lav and Vati's faces were pale and they wouldn't meet my eyes. I looked up at Apollo. His eyes told me he would support me no matter what. I looked at my brother. He looked indecisive. "No," I said finally. The council was silent.

"No?" Zeus asked. "You are...turning down our generous gift?"

"I'm honored and everything. Don't get me wrong. It's just...I've got a lot of life left to live. I'd hate to peak before I even got to my 5th year of Hogwarts. I do want a gift though. Do you swear on the Styx to grant my wish?"

"If it is within our power, I do swear on the Styx."

"I assure you, it is. It's not even difficult. From now on, I want you to properly recognize all your children. All the children...of all the gods."

"Nina, what do you mean?" my dad asked.

"Kronos wouldn't have risen if it hadn't been for a lot of demigods who felt abandoned by their parents. They felt angry, resentful, and unlove, and they had a good reason."

"You dare accuse-" Zeus started.

"No more undetermined kids. I want you guys to claim all your kids-all your demigod kids-by the time they turn 13. They won't be left out in the world on their own at the mercy of monsters. I want them claimed and brought to camp so they can be trained right, and survive."

Percy stepped up. "I do not wish to be immortal either. The minor gods, Nemesis, Hecate, Morpheus, Janus, Hebe-they all deserve a general amnesty and a place at Camp Half-Blood. They're children shouldn't be ignored. Calypso and the other peaceful Titan-kind should be pardoned too. And Lord Hades' children should have a place at camp as well. Nico has proven that."

"Oh, and no more pact of the Big Three," I cut in. "That didn't work anyway. You've got to stop trying to get rid of powerful demigods. We're going to train them and accept them instead. Oh, and Lord Zeus, stop getting cranky when children of Poseidon and Hades are in your domain. They allow your kids in their domains so get over it." Zeus glared at me but nodded.

Percy rolled his eyes at me. "Is that all?" asked Zeus.

"We hold you to your oath," Percy and I said together.

"They are correct," sighed Athena, "as much as I loathe to admit it. We have been unwise to ignore our children. I move that we accept the twins' plan."

"All in favor?" asked Hermes. All the gods raised their hands.

I stared out over the wreck that was Manhattan, leaning against the railing. Someone came up behind me and wrapped their arms around my waist. "Hey, Sparkles."

"Hey, 'Pollo," I sighed. I rested my head against his chest. " I suppose you're here to ask me why I turned down immortality?"

"A god isn't allowed to come see the most beautiful girl in the world?" he asked.

I looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "Okay, you're right. That is what I wanted to ask you," he admitted.

"I don't really know," I sighed. "It just felt like the right thing to do. You're not mad at me, are you?"

"Nah, I'm proud of you actually. Not many would turn down immortality."

"I would miss Lav and Vati too much. Besides, you can always visit me on Earth. They won't be able to visit me on Olympus."

"You have a point. Happy birthday by the way."

"Huh?"

"It's August 18th. Unless I am mistaken, that would be your birthday."

"Oh yeah, I guess I forgot what with the war and everything."

Apollo sighed dramatically. "What kind of world do we live in where people forget when it's their birthday."

"Drama Queen," I murmured.

"Drama King," he corrected. I rolled my eyes.

After about an hour of chatting, Apollo brought me to camp. "By the way," he whispered in my ear, "you have a 5 year old future step daughter in London. Her name is Freya, Freya Roberts. She's my only other kid that hasn't made it to camp. She's also my youngest."

"She better be your youngest. Any younger than 5 would've been born after you found out I was the daughter of Poseidon. I'm pretty sure that would've been considered cheating on me." Chiron, Annabeth, Grover, Percy, Nico, and Rachel were all staring at me. Wait, what is Rachel doing here?

"Oh," Apollo said. I noticed Rachel's eyes were glowing green. "Rachel Elizabeth Dare," he said. "You have been blessed with the gift of prophecy. But it is also a curse. Are you sure you want this?"

"It is my destiny," Rachel nodded.

"Do you accept the risks?"

"I do."

"Then proceed."

Rachel started chanting and the mummy oracle appeared in front of her. Green mist came out of it and entered Rachel. The mummy disintegrated and Rachel curled up in the fetal position on the floor. "What's going on?" I asked.

"This is the most delicate part," Apollo informed us. "Either the spirit takes hold, or it doesn't."

"And if it doesn't?" Annabeth asked.

"Five syllables," Apollo said, counting them out on his fingers. "That would be real bad." Rachel sat up and Nico helped her stand up. "Ladies and gentlemen," Apollo grinned. "May I introduce the new Oracle of Delphi. Oh, look it's starting." Rachel collapsed and Nico and Percy caught her. Her eyes were glowing green when she looked up.

"Eight half-bloods shall answer the call.

To storm or fire, the world must fall.

An oath to keep with a final breath,

And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death."

Rachel returned to normal. "That would be the next Great Prophecy," Apollo groaned.

"That doesn't sound good," I sighed. He shook his head.

"I best get back and tell the other gods. Good bye." He kissed me and disappeared in a flash of golden light.

During dinner, everybody came up to thank us. Nico sat at the head table and Dionysus was sitting with Pollux, who seemed to enjoy talking to his dad. When Lav and Vati saw me, they threw themselves at me. I laughed and hugged them back. I told them about the next Great Prophecy and my future step-daughter as Apollo put it. They told me that Remus was coming to pick me up tomorrow to take me to London.

After dinner, Percy and I had a mini birthday party with Lav, Vati, Grover, Juniper, Annabeth, and Rachel. Lavender picked up some Gryffindor courage and marched up to my brother. She pulled his head down and started kissing him. It took him a minute, but he began to kiss her back. A bunch of people came out of the shadows. "It looks like the love birds need to cool off," grinned Clarisse. She and the rest of the camp picked up Percy and Lav and we all carried them down to the canoe lake. We let them stay close enough to hold hands. When we dumped them in the water, I felt a disturbance in the water. Percy had made an air bubble around them. Who knew when they were going to come back up.


	59. Chapter 58: Freya and the Order

**Sorry about not updating. I had band camp and then we went camping. Thanks for the reviews Sassycassie218, percyjacksonfan135, Artemis Lovegood, sisca8, QuillMist9674, Xby, Nichole315, lunarue.13, rioludoodle, AliceIvyRose, juie662, and ZoeyMarieSnape. ZoeyMarieSnape: I will put up a poll to see if Freya will be a witch or not. You'll find out about her in this chapter. julie662: Padma will go back to camp. Thalia won't stay a Hunter, but I don't know what I'll do with her yet. Annabeth will take over Annabeth's roll, but Annabeth will still have her mini quest in Mark of Athena. AliceIvyRose: Nina will be made immortal at the end of HOO. Sassycassie218: Please send in some ideas for charms. rioludoodle: I tried not to make Nina too Mary Sue, but I think I failed. Every girl has their Mary Sue moments though. lunarue.13: Like I said to AlicIvyRose, Nina will be made immortal at the end of HOO. You'll find out about Freya in this chapter. I don't want to spoil it. Artemis Lovegood: Love the story by the way:D People will see Vati's arm. They won't find out about the war in this story, but I'm considering making a sequel. sisca8: No, I am not from Utah. What gave you that idea? Not being mean, just curious. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Fifty Eight: Freya and the Order

Remus came to pick me up right after lunch. He congratulated all of us on beating Kronos. I hugged my friends and brother goodbye before grabbing Moony's hand. With a crack, we disappeared. I felt like I was being squeezed through a tube. It was much less comfortable then when I had apparated with Bill. I felt really queasy. Moony didn't look so good either. "First time apparating?" he asked.

"No, I apparated once to get to Kings Cross last year with Bill Weasley."

"Ah, yes. Bill's here, actually. So is Charlie." Remus handed me a piece of paper. It said 'The Order of the Phoenix resides at number twelve Grimmauld Place.' "You got all that?" he asked me. I nodded and looked up. A door was appearing in front of me. I love magic. We were about to walk in when a cry interrupted us. I turned and saw a little girl hiding behind the garbage bins. She poked her head out to see who we were before hiding again. Remus looked at me before going up in front of the bins. I heard a squeak, and the little girl ran out from her hiding spot. She ducked behind my legs and couldn't have been more than 3. I turned around and scooped her up as Remus walked over to me. She buried her face in my shoulder, shivering.

Rubbing her back, I asked, "What's your name, baby girl?"

"F-Freya. Y-you're not g-gonna take me back to my mommy are you?"

"Why don't you want to go back to your mom, Freya?" Remus asked.

She flinched back from him. "Sweetheart," I tried, "you're gonna have to tell us."

"Sh-she's mean. She gives me boo-boos. I don't like her. Please don't take me back." I looked at the little girl in my arms. There were bruises and cuts up and down her entire body. Her right arm was crooked. It looked broken.

"What about your dad, Freya?" Remus asked.

"I don't have one. He had to go away before I was born, and mommy says it's my fault. She doesn't like me."

"How old are you, Freya?" I asked.

"Five," she said, proudly holding up her left hand to show me."

**A demigod** Remus mouthed to me.

**I think she's Apollo's** I mouthed back. "Freya, what's your last name?"

"R-Roberts. My l-last name is Roberts"

That's the name of Apollo's daughter he told me about yesterday. "Don't worry, Freya. You can come home with us. Do you know how to read?"

She nodded eagerly and I handed her the paper. She frowned slightly as she struggled through reading it. I switched to Greek so I could talk to Remus without Freya hearing. She's a daughter of Apollo. He told me about her. We can keep her with us and then I'll take her back to camp over winter break.

This is Sirius' parents house. It's not really good for kids.

I don't care. I'm sure Sirius will enjoy meeting his baby cousin anyway.

She's your future step-daughter, Remus shrugged. I glared at him.

"You ready, Freya?" She nodded her head eagerly. I walked up to the door and opened it with the hand that wasn't supporting the little girl. As soon as I was inside, a wand was in my face. In pure childish curiosity, Freya poked the tip with her tiny finger. The tip illuminated and I saw the thin face of Bill Weasley. Freya reached out and pulled on his earring. He winced but didn't put his wand down.

"When and where was our first meeting, and what were you eating?"

"At my apartment in Manhattan before the Quidditch World Cup last year. I was eating cold pizza." Bill nodded and stuck his wand into his leather boot.

"Good to see you again, Nina. Who's the kid?"

"This is Freya. Freya, this is my friend Bill Weasley."

"He's got a fang." Bill chuckled as Remus closed the door. Bill beckoned me forwards into the kitchen. There were a lot of strange faces. Freya squeaked and hid her face in my shoulder.

"It's okay, Freya. They won't hurt you. They're nice." She looked at all the people cautiously. Mrs. Weasley squealed and ran forward to take Freya from me. Freya hid her face again and I glared at her. Mrs. Weasley seemed very put out. Mr. Weasley pulled her back into her chair.

"Guys," Bill introduced, "this is Nina and Freya for those who don't know. Freya's the little girl. This is Dedalus Diggle, Hestia Jones, Nymphadora Tonks, she prefers Tonks, Mundungus Fletcher, and Kingsley Shacklebolt. I think you know everyone else."

"Thanks, Bill. C'mon Freya. I'll show you my cousin." I brought Freya to the head of the table where Sirius was sitting. "This is Sirius. He's really weird."

"I resent that."

"I speak naught but the truth," I said, sticking my tongue out." Freya giggled and held out her left arm to Sirius. She kept her injured one by her side. Sirius took her from me and sat her down on the table in front of him.

"What happened to you, midget? You don't look so good." Freya whimpered.

She's a daughter of Apollo, I told him, switching to Greek and leaning in to whisper. She said her mother did it. We found her outside behind the trash cans. Sirius growled and pulled out his wand to heal Freya. Freya flinched back and tears formed in her sapphire blue eyes. I noticed they were the exact same shade as Apollo's. None of his kids had the exact same shade as him.

"It's okay, Freya. I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm going to make you feel better. I promise it will only sting a little," Sirius said. I had never seen him like that. Freya nodded and grabbed two of my fingers with her little hand. "Episkey," Sirius said. The bones in Freya's arm snapped back together.

Freya winced slightly. She wiggled her arm and was happy to find she could move it. "That's just like magic," she giggled.

"It was magic, Freya. I'm a witch and Sirius is a wizard. So is Remus, the man I was with, and Bill."

"Bill is the guy with the funny earring, right?"

Bill laughed. "Yup, that's me." Freya waved shyly at him. He grinned at her and ruffled her golden hair. She tried to flatten it back down, but it was as messy as he father's. It could use a good brushing too. You're just in time for dinner, by the way."

"Oh, I just had lunch. It is only noon in New York. Are you hungry, Freya?" She looked like she wanted to say something but shook her head instead. "It's okay if you are, Sweetie. I can make you some soup if you don't like what they're eating."

"Mommy only gives me breakfast. I don't eat dinner. She says only good girls get dinner, and I'm a bad girl."

"Freya, you aren't a bad girl. You can eat whenever you're hungry, love," Sirius said. He picked her up and pulled her into his lap. She tried to struggle away, but he ignored it and pulled her closer to him. He kissed her forehead and held her closer. "You want macaroni cheese?"

"What's that?"

"You've never-never mind. C'mon, let's go make some. You'll love it." He set Freya down on the table and asked her pulled a sauce pan down from above him. "Hey, Nina," he whispered in my ear. "Can you summon a box of Kraft from your bracelet?"

I rolled my eyes but ducked down behind the island and summoned a box of white cheddar, my favorite. When I stood back up, Sirius had already started magically boiling the water. I dumped the pasta in went to get butter and milk from the fridge. Sirius dumped that in after draining the water, and Freya mixed the concoction.

Sirius brought the hot pot to the table. By this time, everyone else had joined us. Harry flashed me a grin and sat down next to me. As soon as he sat down, he started brooding. Sirius sighed so I assumed Harry's been doing this the entire time he's been here. Hermione sat down opposite of me and Ginny was next to Harry. fred and George each hugged me before taking places near Bill and Charlie. Freya hopped up onto my lap and Sirius was next to me.

Sirius scooped mac and cheese in his dish and Freya's. Right before he could take a bite, Mrs. Weasley shrieked, "Sirius Black!" Freya flinched away from the yelling and I covered her ears. "You can eat what the rest of us are having. You will not eat children's food!"

Sirius stood up. "This is my house, Molly! I will eat what I want to. I am a grown man and don't need you telling me what to do so just shut up!" Sirius sat back down and Mrs. Weasley looked like she was about to say something else. Mr. Weasley pulled her back into her seat. She glared at her husband then turned her glare to Siri. I removed my hands from Freya's head. She whimpered and curled into me. I murmured comforting words into her hair as I ran my fingers through it. Eventually, Freya calmed down and let me feed her some mac and cheese.

When she was done, she curled back into side. "I like that," she sighed. "That's my favorite food." She yawned, stretching her little arms.

"Let's get you to bed, midget," Sirius grinned. "You want to stay with Nina?" Freya nodded her head and rested it on my shoulder. I brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"Christina is just a child, Sirius. She can't take care of a little girl. Freya can stay with me and Arthur. It's not like you know how to raise a child either."

"Shut up, woman! I helped raise Harry, didn't I?" Mrs. Weasley hadn't expected a comeback. "If Freya wants to stay with Nina, she can stay with Nina. You have no say about what goes on in this house! C'mon, Nina, Freya, you can stay in my brother's old room. I'll transfigure some old clothes into pajamas for you, midget." Freya giggled and held out her arms to Sirius. He took her from me and led us up the stairs.

We were in the room across from Sirius'. He took his mother's hair brush and transfigured it into a pair of footsies with little frogs on the feet. Freya rolled onto her back on the bed and lifted up her feet. She played with the frogs on her tiny toes. It was the most adorable thing I'd ever seen. I pulled the covers over her tiny body and kissed her forehead. Sirius did the same. I sat next to her. "Do you want me to sing you a song?" I asked.

"Would you?"

"Of course."

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine

You make me happy when skies are grey

You never know, dear, how much I love you

Please don't take my sunshine away

The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping

I dreamt I held you in my arms

When I awoke, dear, I was mistaken

So I hung my head, and I cried

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine

You make me happy when skies are grey

You never know, dear, how much I love you

Please don't take my sunshine away

I'll always love you and make you happy

If you will only say the same

But if you leave me to love another,

You'll regret it all one day

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine

You make me happy when skies are grey

You never know, dear, how much I love you

Please don't take my sunshine away

Please don't take my sunshine away

I looked down to see that Freya was sleeping. Sirius smiled and helped me up. After he closed the door behind us, I said, "I'm sorry about Luke. I know you didn't know him well and all, but he was your brother."

Sirius sighed. "I've lived a lot longer than most demigods, Nina. I've seen a lot of my siblings die. Most of them I hardly knew. It never makes it any easier." He looked at the ground for another second before looking up with his usual grin. "Shall we. We'll answer some questions about the Order for you and Harry."

"What is the Order of the Phoenix?" I asked as we started down the four flights of stairs.

"Its an organization Dumbledore started up. We fight Voldemort. I swear, he's almost as hard to kill as Kronos."

"Nothing is as hard as Kronos. I hope I didn't just jinx us."

"You probably did," Sirius laughed as he swung open the door to the kitchen. We regained our seats. Harry grabbed my hand under the table. I stepped on his foot really hard. He winced and pulled his hand back. Everyone stared at us, but I managed to keep a straight face. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred, and George were the others that were here to ask questions. Mrs. Weasley didn't look very happy about that.

"They're too young," she snapped.

"Since when did someone have to be in the Order to ask questions?" Sirius smirked almost lazily. "Besides, Remus, James, and I were Fred and George's age when we joined. Harry and Nina haven't gotten any news for nearly a month. They've got the right to know what's been happen-"

"It's not down to you to decide what's good for them. You haven't forgotten what Dumbledore said, I suppose?"

"Which bit?" Sirius rolled his eyes.

"The bit about not telling those two more than they need to know."

"I don't intend on telling them more than they need to know. But as they were the ones who saw Voldemort come back, they have more right than most to-"

"They're only 15! Nina just turned 15 yesterday!"

"And they've dealt with more than most of the Order."

"No one's denying what they've done! But they're still-"

"They aren't children!" Sirius was nearly shouting now.

"They aren't adults either. Harry's not James and I don't know who you think Christina-"

"It's Nina," I interrupted.

Mrs. Weasley ignored me. "Is, but she is still a little girl."

"I'm perfectly clear who they are, Molly. Nina is not a little girl! She has experienced far worse than you could even have dreamed of so I suggest you shut up."

"Those two are still in school and adults responsible for them should not forget it."

"Meaning I'm an irresponsible godfather?" Sirius growled, sounding more and more like his animagus form.

"Meaning you've been known to act rashly, Sirius, which is why Dumbledore keeps reminding you to stay at home and-"

"We'll leave my instructions from the man who let me rot in prison for his idiotic greater good out of this, if you please."

There was an awkward silence before Mrs. Weasley started up again. "Arthur! Arthur, back me up!"

Mr. Weasley didn't say a word. Instead, Remus spoke up quietly. "Personally, I think it's better Harry and Nina get the facts-all the facts, Molly. You heard Albus. They both deserve to hear the story."

"I refuse to allow it."

"Hey, I want a say in this. I've been taking care of myself since I was a little girl, Mrs. Weasley. I spent half my life out on the streets. I'm pretty good at eavesdropping as well, so either way-yes, even if you put curses up-I will get all the information."

Mrs. Weasley humphed and plopped down into her chair."

"I would ask about the whole living on the streets thing," Remus said, "but I know you and I figure I may get injured if I do."

"Good wolfy," I smirked.

"Alright," Harry said. "what's been going on?"

"Well, we know quite a lot," started Sirius.

"More than he thinks we do anyway," Remus finished.

"How come he's stopped killing people?" Harry asked.

"You two messed up his comeback. He can't bring attention to himself because it would be dangerous for him."

"How did we mess it up?" I asked.

"You two weren't supposed to survive," Sirius answered.

"Maybe if he wanted to kill us, he should have skipped the whole speech and just killed Harry instead of dueling him. Not that I want you dead or anything, Harry."

"Let's not talk about how he should have killed you, yeah?" Sirius said. "Anyways, you two and Diggory alerted Dumbledore about Voldemort which was the last thing he wanted."

"How has that helped?" Harry asked.

Bill snorted into his hot chocolate. "Are you kidding? Dumbledore was the only one Voldemort was ever scared of! Because of you and Nina, Dumbledore was able to reform the Order."

"So what's the Order been doing?" Harry prompted.

"Making sure Voldemort doesn't steal the secret weapon he's after."

"What's the weapon?" I asked, popping a piece of gum in my mouth. The conversation was setting me on edge. Whenever I'm on edge, I like to be chewing something. That's the main reason we put snacks out during war meetings at camp.

"That's enough," snapped Mrs. Weasley. You've given them enough information."

"But I just started my piece of gum," I sighed.

Mrs. Weasley glared at me as Charlie asked me for a stick of gum. She marched us all up to bed. Where do you think you're going, young lady?" she asked as I started walking up the next flight of stairs.

"Bed," I said.

"You'll be sleeping with Hermione and Ginny down this hallway," Mrs. Weasley frowned.

"Nope. Sirius already showed me my room. Goodnight all." I climbed up the next flight of stairs. I made a left and slowly opened the door so as not to wake up Freya. She was still sleeping quietly. I quickly changed into a pair of grey sweatpants and a red tank top before climbing into bed. Freya unconsciously curled up to me and I laid an arm over her tiny body. This was going to be a long rest of the summer.


	60. Chapter 59: Umbridge

**Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the reviews percyjackson135, brelee24, Priscilla Harkness, Grey-Rain-Cloud, Nichole135, Kiyora-Hatake, and BatFamily01. Kiyora-Hatake:Nina will be at Grimmauld Place with Freya and Siri. She will be at Camp Jupiter, but you'll find out about that later. brelee24: I don't have any issues with Molly. This is in the opinion of a 15 year girl who has been independent her entire life. She doesn't take well to being told what to do and hates when people bad mouth her family. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Fifty Nine: Umbridge

The next morning, I woke up to see sapphire eyes staring down at me. "Hey, Freya," I yawned as I sat up.

She crawled into my lap. "Hi, hi." Freya snuggled into my chest.

"You hungry, little girl?" She nodded. I picked her up and maneuvered my way out the door and down the stairs. All the Weasleys, Harry, Hermione, Siri, and Remus were already there. I plopped Freya sown in Sirius' lap and went to get some food. "Cornflakes okay?" I asked.

"Yeah," Freya answered. I pulled out the box of cereal, a bowl, spoon, and the milk. I made Freya's bowl then made a bowl for myself. I was about to take her from Sirius, but he was already feeding her. I smiled and started eating my own cereal. Mrs. Weasley was already putting away the other's dishes. Sirius informed us that we would be cleaning all day. I laughed when Freya started grumbling about it under her breath. Sirius and Remus looked like they were trying not to laugh themselves.

Over the course of the day, many things were accomplished. We managed to clean the drawing room. I was introduced to Sirius' creepy house elf, Kreacher. Freya became deathly afraid of Kreacher. We found a locket with an S inscribed on it. The locket plain out refused to open. A pair of robes tried to strangle Ron. A magic music box almost put us all to sleep. We found a lot of doxies in the curtains. Fred and George took some of the doxy venom. It really was an interesting day.  
*TIME SKIP*

There was a lot of crying on the day we had to leave for Kings Cross, all done by one person in particular. Freya was clinging to my leg and trying to stop me from finishing my packing. She had really bonded with Sirius, Remus, Fred, George, and me. She was very good with Bill, Charlie, and Tonks as well. She liked me the most. "Freya, baby, I promise you'll see me again. I'm not leaving forever."

"B-but you're gonna be g-gone for a really long t-time and I don't want you t-to leave me."

"Sirius, Remus, Bill, Charlie, and Tonks will still be here, Freya."

"But you and Fred and George are l-leaving." Freya was giving me her best kicked puppy eyes and I was very tempted to forget school and stay here with her. I shook my head.

"Freya, I would stay if I could, but I really have to go to school. I promise I'll visit you as soon as I can."

"Pinky promise?" she asked.

""Pinky promise," I agreed, locking my pinky with hers.

We ran downstairs. I willed my trunk to shrink and stuck it back on its place on my bracelet. Mrs. Weasley was giving us instructions. "Christina, Harry, you're to come with me and Tonks. Leave your trunks and your owls...Christina, where's yours." I gestured to my bracelet.

A friend of my charmed it so it would shrink at my will."

"Right, Alastor's going to deal with the luggage." Skittles made an annoyed sound at being called luggage.

_How dare she call me luggage!_

_Oh, hush you._

"Oh, for heaven's sake, Sirius, Dumbledore said no," reminded Mrs. Weasley. I turned to see Sirius walk up in his animagus form. Freya giggled and clapped her hands. She stretched her little arms out to her older cousin and I placed her on his back. He was more than large enough to support her. Freya grabbed onto Sirius' ears. It didn't seem to bother him at all. He barked happily. "Oh, honestly..." Mrs. Weasley groaned. "Well, on your own head be it!"

Mrs. Weasley led Harry, Siri, Freya, and me out the door and up a hill. Freya was laughing as she rode on top of Sirius. He was very careful not to let her fall. I stood next to them, ready to catch Freya, just in case. Tonks had used her metamorphmagus powers to make herself look like an old lady. It took us 20 minutes to reach the station. Everyone was already there waiting for us on our platform.

"Nice dog, Nina," called Lee Jordan. Sirius barked and Freya looked at Lee curiously. "Who's the little one?"

"Thanks Lee. This is Freya. Freya, this is Lee Jordan."

"Hi," she whispered shyly. He flashed her a grin and went over to talk to Fred and George. I took Freya off of Sirius' back and hugged her. She looked like she was ready to cry again. "Bye bye, Nina. I'll miss you."

"Bye Freya. I'll see you over Christmas break. Don't you worry. Sirius jumped up with his paws on my shoulders and started licking me good bye. He did the same to Harry. I waved to everyone and climbed on the train. As it started moving, Sirius and Freya ran after it. Freya stuck close to Sirius' side so as not to get lost. People were laughing watching the big dog and little girl run after the train. _Bye,_ Skittles called.

_They can't hear you._

_I don't care._ I shook my head at my rainbow winged snowy owl. Ron and Hermione left to go to the prefects meeting. I'm not entirely sure why they made Ron a prefect. He's not exactly the most mature. Fred and George went off with Lee. Ginny, Harry, and I went off to go find a compartment. He was standing awkwardly outside a compartment with Luna in it. "Everywhere's full," he muttered.

"What are you talking about?" Ginny asked. I was confused too. Neville was friends with Luna. "There's room in this one. Loony Lovegood is the only one in here."

"Her name is Luna," I snapped. I opened the door and said hello to my friend. We all talked to Luna for a few minutes before the compartment door slid open again. Lav and Vati walked in, giggling about something. "Oh, do please share what you find so amusing," I said sarcastically. Sometimes it's best not to aske with these two.

"Lav is recounting her amazing month with her boyfriend," Vati giggled. I started laughing. Lavender and Percy were really cute together. Nev showed us a rare plant, mimbulus mimbletonia, his grandmother had gotten him for his birthday. It was supposed to have magical qualities and Nev was trying to figure them out. Neville dumped Trevor, his toad, into my lap. The toad tried to get away, but I grabbed it at the last second.

Neville poked a spot on the plant with the tip of his quill. Green liquid spurted from spots all over the plant. I got a face full of it. The others managed to get their hands above their faces in time. "Sorry," Neville groaned. "I'm still trying to figure it all out. Don't worry. It isn't poisonous." I handed him back Trevor and began to wipe my face off. The good smelt awful.

When Ron and Hermione arrived, nearly an hour later, they informed us that Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson were the Slytherin prefects. I have no idea what Dumbledore is thinking. Both of them are really biased. They will be completely unfair. Harry borrowed Luna's magazine and started reading it. "Anything good in there?" asked Ron.

"Of course not," Hermione said scathingly. "The Quibbler's rubbish. Everyone knows that."

"Excuse me," Luna frowned, her voice losing his dreamy quality. "My stepfather's the editor."

Hermione blushed. "Oh, er, well, it's got some interesting...I mean, it's quite..."

"I'll have it back," Luna said to Harry, still frowning. She glared at Hermione before hiding her face behind her magazine. I glared at Hermione. That girl has got to watch what she says.

The compartment door slid open. "Tell me," sneered Malfoy. "How does it feel to be second best to Granger and Weasley, Jackson, Potter?"

"Shut up, Malfoy," sighed Hermione.

"I seem to have touched a nerve," smirked the Slytherin prefect. "Watch yourselves, Potter, Jackson, because I'll be dogging your footsteps." I looked at Lav and Vati. They had heard the emphasis on dogging too.

Where did Malfoy see him? asked Lavender in Greek.

On the platform. He was in his animagus form, I said.

Oh no, groaned Parvati.

When we got off the train, Grubbly-Plank had taken Hagrid's spot. I wonder where Hagrid is. We climbed onto the carriages that would take us to Hogwarts. Luna, Nev, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Lav, Vati, and I all sat in the same carriage. I told Lav and Vati all about Freya and how cute she was.

The new DADA teacher worked or the ministry. Harry told us that he had seen her at his hearing. He had to go to one because he used a patronus charm on two dementors that were outside his house. The Sorting Hat's song was very long this year. It warned us that we needed to stick together or external foes would destroy us. I'm guessing it was referring to Voldemort.

Dumbledore welcomed us all. After the speech, he informed us of the new staffing arrangements. Grubbly-Plank was teaching Care of Magical Creatures. I wonder what happened to Hagrid. Dolores Umbridge, the ministry worker, was teaching DADA. She gave this whole speech about how she wanted to bond with us. I saw through it. It was a way for the ministry to be able to spy on Dumbledore.

The next day, classes started. We had History of Magic, double Potions, Divination, and DADA. It was a pretty good day. I didn't know how Umbridge would be though. In History of Magic, we learned about the Gigantomachy. It was a war between 12 giant sons of Gaia and the gods. The only way to beat them was through the combined efforts of demigod and god. That could be bad. History often repeats itself and the Gigantomachy came right after the Titanomachy.

We made the Draught of Peace in Potions. I could have really used some of this over the summer. I was a little heavy on the powdered moonstone. My potion was a darker silver than it was supposed to be. It wasn't too bad though, and Sev didn't say anything.

In Divination, we were interpreting dreams. Vati told us about a dream she had where her sister Drew was floating around camp upside down. We couldn't find what that meant and Professor Trelawney wasn't entirely sure either. Lavender just said that she hoped it was a demigod dream.

DADA was really bad. When we were all seated, Umbridge said, "Well, good afternoon!" in a faux cheery voice.

"Good afternoon," a few people mumbled.

Umbridge reprimanded us for not saying good afternoon cheerfully. What the Hades is her issue? "Wands away and quills out, please," she smiled. Umbridge pulled out her own wand, which was really short, and tapped the board. Defense Against the Dark Arts: A Return to Basic Principles appeared on the board. Umbridge told us that all our teachers were below standard. She told us to read chapter one of Defensive Magical Theory. Everyone opened their books except Hermione and me. I had the content etched into my brain. I didn't need to read the book again.

Hermione raised her hand. Umbridge ignored it. That's not good, Hermione could be dying and no one would ever know until it's too late. Umbridge finally gave in when more than half the class had stopped reading and started staring at Hermione. "Did you want to ask something about the chapter, dear?"

"Well, we're just reading now. If you have other queries, we can deal with them at the end of class."

"I have a query about your course aims," said Hermione.

"And your name is-?"

"Hermione Granger."

"Well, Miss Granger, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully."

"Well, I don't," Hermione said. "There's nothing written up there about using defensive spells."

"Using defensive spells?" asked Umbridge. "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom where you might need to use a defensive spell, Miss Granger. You surely aren't expecting to get attacked during class?"

"We're not going magic?" Ron interrupted.

"Students raise their hands when they wish to speak in my class, Mr.-?"

"Weasley," Ron grumbled, thrusting his arm up into the air.

Umbridge turned her back on him. I raised my hand along with Harry. "Yes Miss-"

"Christina Jackson, ma'am. Surely the whole point of Defense Against the Dark Arts is to practice defensive spells. What good is theory if we were to get attacked?"

"Are you a ministry trained educational expert, Miss Jackson?"

"Are you?" I asked her.

"Well, um...That is not the point. You are not qualified to decide what the whole 'point' of this class is. Wizards much older and cleverer than you have devised this program. You shall be learning about defensive spells in a secure, risk-free way-"

"What use is that?" Harry said. "If we're going to be attacked, in a-"

"Hand, Mr. Potter," sang Umbridge."

Lav turned to Vati. "You remember when I said I would be nicer to Drew when toads sang?"

"Yeah," Vati whispered back.

"Looks like I've gotta be nice now." I snorted and Vati tried to hold back her giggles as Lavender kept a perfectly straight face. Umbridge glared at us.

She ignored Harry's now raised hand. Umbridge pointed to Dean. "And your name is?"

"Dean Thomas."

"Well, Mr. Thomas?"

"Well, it's like Harry said, isn't it? If we're going to be attacked, it won't be risk-free-"

"I repeat, do you expect to be attacked in my classes?"

"No, but-"

"I do not wish to criticize the way things have been run in this school, but you have been exposed to many irresponsible wizards in this class, very irresponsible indeed-not to mention, extremely dangerous half-breeds."

"If you mean Professor Lupin," argued Dean, "he was the best we ever had."

"Hand, Mr. Thomas! As I was saying-you have been introduced to a variety of spells that have been complex, inappropriate to your age group, and potentially lethal. You have been frightened into believing that you are likely to meet Dark attacks every other day-"

"No we haven't," Hermione said, "we just-"

"Your hand is not up, Miss Granger! It is my understanding that my predecessor not only performed illegal curses in front of you, he also performed them on you-"

"Well, he turned out to be a maniac, didn't he?" said Parvati.

"Your hand is not up, Miss-"

"Patil," Vati groaned, sticking her hand into the air.

Umbridge ignored it. "Now, it is the view of the ministry that a theoretical knowledge will be more than sufficient to get you through your examinations, which, after all, is what school is all about. And your name is?" Umbridge turned to Lavender.

"Lavender Brown, and isn't there a practical bit in our Defense Against the Dark Arts OWL? Aren't we supposed to show that we can actually do the counter curses and things?"

"As long as you have studied the theory hard enough, there is no reason why you should not be able to perform the spells under carefully controlled examination conditions."

"Without ever practicing them before? Are you telling us that the first time we'll get to use the spells will be during our exam?"

"I repeat, as long as you have studied the theory hard enough-"

"And what good's theory going to be in the real world?" I demanded, my arm high in the air.

"This is school, Miss Jackson, not the real world."

"Well, what about when we're not in the real world. Say Voldemort didn't come back." Everyone shuddered and I rolled my eyes. "There are still dark creatures and wizards out there that will attack us."

"There are no more dark wizards, Miss Jackson."

"Well, what do you call the people at the Quidditch World Cup last year."

"They merely partaking in after game fun."

"Then, why was the Dark Mark in the sky? You call muggle-baiting fun?"

"I never said that."

"Uh, yeah, you kinda did," I snapped.

"Detention, my office. Five o'clock tonight."

The rest of the class continued arguing with Umbridge. I sat back in my seat. Harry earned himself a detention with me by saying that Voldemort was back. Umbridge told us to read. I still didn't open my book. "Miss Jackson, kindly start reading chapter one."

"I already read it."

"Well no harm could come from rereading it."

"I'm eidetic. It's etched into my brain. I could recite it right here and right now if you wanted."

"You will be having another detention with me tomorrow night as well, Miss Jackson. Same time and place."

That night, Harry and I walked up to detention together. Harry knocked on the door and a sugary voice said, "Come in." I shoved open the door and flopped down in one of the chairs near a table Umbridge had set up. "You two will be doing some lines for me." Se put a thin, long, black quill in front of Harry and me. "I want you to write 'I must not tell lies.'"

"How much?" I asked.

"As long as it takes for the words to sink in."

"You haven't given us any ink," Harry said.

"You won't be needing any," smirked Umbridge. I put the quill to the parchment and started to scribble the words. Nothing happened.

"I think your quill's broken. Nothing's happening," I said. I tried writing again as she watched me.

"Well, that's odd, isn't it." Umbridge took the parchment and made a scratch. She flinched as the exact same mark appeared on her hand. She tried to use a blood quill on me! She handed the quill back to me and ordered me to try and write again. It still didn't work. Of course it wouldn't, the Curse of Achilles is protecting me. "Y-you are excused, Miss Jackson. Mr. Potter, you will continue writing lines."

I ran out of the room. Blood quills are illegal! Dumbledore won't stop it either, he can't. Umbridge is here because of some law and now no one can get rid of her. Oh, Remus, why did you have to resign? I decided not to tell Apollo, Artemis, or Dad about the blood quill. Who knew what they would do. Besides, I can't just run to them with all my problems.


	61. Chapter 60: High Inquisitor and the DA

**Here's the next chapter guys. Thanks for the reviews 4everepic, Nymphadora Jackson, lunarue.13, QuillMist9674, Xby, Artemis Lovegood, percyjacksonfan135, ZoeyMarieSnape, and Batfamilyfan01. ZoeyMarieSnape: Nina will tell Apollo about Freya, but she won't tell anyone about the blood quills. She doesn't think it's important because they don't affect her. Artemis Lovegood: Dumbledore can't do anything about the blood quill because Umbridge is with the ministry so he has no control. Nina will be part of the prophecy of eight. Lav is taking Annabeth's position, but Annabeth is still going because of the Mark of Athena. I will make up my own stuff for the other two books, but I might wait for the House of Hades. I probably won't though. lunarue.13: The blood quills aren't working because of the Curse of Achilles. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Sixty: High Inquisitor and the D.A.

The next day, I wrote a letter to Sirius. He asked us to call him Snuffles in our letters in case someone intercepted our letters.  
Dear Snuffles,

I hope you and Freya have been doing better than the rest of us. We have this new defense teacher, Dolores Umbridge. She's awful. She's having us read first year material and she's not letting us use our wands. How are we supposed to learn? She used a blood quill on Harry and me! It didn't work on me because of...well, you know, the thing.

Is Freya doing okay? Is she still afraid of nearly everyone? Can you tell her about her dad? I would of it myself, but I'm not with you two.

Love,

Nina

I walked up to the Owlery. I passed by Peeves who was about to drop a bust on my head until he realized who I was. He grinned at me sheepishly before zooming back to his hiding place. I rolled my eyes at the poltergeist and continued on my way. _Skittles, are you in here?_ I called, searching for my owl. A rainbow swooped down in front of me.

_Hi, Nina. You need me to deliver a letter?_

_Yup. Can you bring this to Sirius at Grimmauld Place?_

_Sure!_ Skittles stuck out her leg and I tied the letter to it. She flew off into the ir and I ran down to the Great Hall. I was starving!

Vati showed me the Daily Prophet. The headline was Sirius being spotted in London. I'll bet Lucius Malfoy spotted him. That's what Malfoy meant when he said he would be dogging Harry and me. That little...

That night, Ron got a letter from Percy, his older brother. Percy believed what the ministry was saying and had cut all ties from the family. He said that Ron shouldn't hang out with Harry and me. Percy called me unbalanced and violent. I won't deny the fact that I am slightly violent at times, but I am most certainly not unstable. Ron called his brother a git.

Later that night, after everyone had left the common room, something appeared in the fire. I knelt down to get a closer look. Vati and Lav dropped to their knees beside me. Harry knelt beside Lav and Ron beside Vati. Hermione stood behind me. Sirius' head had popped up in the fire. "I was starting to think you all would go to bed before everyone else had disappeared. I've been checking every hour. Hello, Lavender, Parvati."

"Hi,Sirius," the sisters grinned. Sometimes I wonder if they're twins instead of Padma and Vati.

"This was the only way I could answer Harry's letter. I didn't want to resort to codes because they're breakable."

"What about my letter?" I asked, slightly annoyed he hadn't wanted to answer me.

"I didn't need to put any disclosed information in my response to you, Nina. Freya says hi, by the way." Sirius told Harry that he didn't think his scar hurting had anything to do with Umbridge. It was probably just the fact that Voldemort was back and gaining power. Sirius also told us that Fudge thought Dumbledore was making a wizard army out of the students. How ridiculous can you get to ignore the truth? Sirius disappeared with a tiny pop just as a first year came down to grab a book. He looked at us oddly. I guess we did look pretty strange sitting around the fire like this.

The next day, Lavender threw the Daily Prophet down in front of me. The article was not good.

MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM

DOLORES UMBRIDGE APPOINTED FIRST-EVER "HIGH INQUISITOR"

Basically, Umbridge got to inspect all the teachers, fire the ones she didn't approve of, and make whatever educational degree she could think up. Great, what next, I'll meet a tomboy daughter of Aphrodite?

Umbridge was inspecting Trelawney. We were still working with prophetic dreams. "I relived what happened with Kronos up on Olympus," I whispered.

"Is the subject Kronos or Olympus?" Vati asked.

"I think Kronos because that was what my dream was mainly about." Umbridge interrupted the class and ordered Trelawney to make a prediction. You cannot just force a prophecy to occur. I looked into the fire. The room spun out of focus. I sitting in History of Magic listening to Binns talk about Bellerophon and how he killed the Chimera. Been there, done that. There was a tap on the window. I looked over and spotted two white owls. One had rainbow wings. I recognized the other as Harry's owl. I stood up quietly and went to the window to let them in. Skittles had some blood mixed in with the dye on her wing. I picked her and Hedwig up and brought them back to my seat. Harry quickly took Hedwig from me. _The toad hurt me and read your mail, Nina! I'm sorry, I tried to stop her, but she was too strong._ I hushed my owl and asked Binns to go to the bathroom. I snuck my owl out with me.

Everyone stared at me as I came back to the real world. "Did you have another vision, Miss Jackson?" Professor Trelawney asked eagerly. I nodded and turned to Umbridge.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't injure my familiar and read my mail, Professor." Umbridge spluttered and I turned back to Lav and Vati. I told them what happened in my vision.

Our next lesson was DADA with Umbridge again. She yelled at me for not opening my book. I said, "Well, Professor Umbridge, the entire book is permanently etched into my brain. Unfortunately, there is no possible way to erase it." Umbridge asked me what Slinkhard said about counter jinxes in in chapter 15. "He says they're improperly named and that a counter jinx is what people call their jinxes to make them more acceptable. I disagree. I think Slinkhard just doesn't like jinxes. They can be very useful when used defensively." Umbridge said my opinion didn't matter. That was mean.

Umbridge was in Transfiguration the next day. "Wonderful," Ron smirked. "Let's see that toad get what she deserves." I grinned. I was excited to see Umbridge get what was coming to her. Gotta love karma sometimes. McGonagall made no indication that she knew Umbridge was there until the shorter witch coughed.

"I was wondering, Professor," Umbridge started, "whether you received my note telling you the date and time of the inspec-"

"Obviously, I received it," growled McGonagall through gritted teeth. "Otherwise I would have asked you what you were doing in my classroom." McGonagall went back to the lesson and when Umbridge tried to interrupt her again, she said, "I wonder how you expect to gain an idea of my usual teaching methods if you continue to interrupt me. You see, I do not usually permit people to talk while I'm talking."

Umbridge humphed and started to scribble on her clipboard. McGonagall had me pass out little field mice to everyone. We were vanishing them. It took me a couple tries to get the spell this time, but I still was the first to achieve success. Hermione managed to vanish hers only seconds after me. Umbridge didn't speak for the rest of the lesson.

That night, Hermione made a very good suggestion. "Harry, why don't you teach us Defense Against the Dark Arts?"

"W-what?" Harry spluttered.

"She has a point," I agreed. "You do get really high marks in Defense."

"So do you," he pointed out.

"Yeah, but we're asking you to teach. Not me."

"No," Harry said, walking out of the room.

"Personally, I thought it was a good idea," said Ron. HErmione and I nodded our heads.

Two weeks later, after a whole lot of pestering, we managed to convince Harry to teach us DADA. He wasn't happy about it, but he agreed. We told a whole lot of people who we knew didn't think Harry was a nutter and they all agreed to meet us in the Hogshead, a bar in Hogsmeade.

I arrived with Harry, Ron, Hermione, Vati, and Lav before anyone else. I was in black skinny jeans, a white and blue striped sweater, and dark brown moccasins. A lot more people than I expected showed up. There was Alicia Spinnet, Angelina Johnson, Cormac McLaggen, Colin and Dennis Creevey, Fred, George, Ginny, Dean, Katie Bell, Lee, Nigel Wolpert, Rionach O'Neil, and Seamus from Gryffindor. From Ravenclaw, there was Luna, Cho Chang, Marietta Edgecombe, Michael Corner, Anthony Goldstein, Terry Boot, and Padma. From Hufflepuff, Ernie MacMillan, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hannah Abbott, Susan Bones, a girl named Leanne, and Zacharias Smith showed up.

It took a while, but eventually, we got everyone to agree to join the group. Now, we had to try to come up with names. "How about the Defense Association," suggested Cho. "We could call it the D.A. for short."

"Oh," said Ginny. "How about Dumbledore's Army. You know, since that's what Fudge fears the most right now. We can still call it the D.A. so no one knows what we're doing." Everyone agreed to that. We all signed our names on a piece of paper that Hermione warned us she had jinxed. If anyone who signed their names spoke about the D.A., something bad would happen. I wonder what would happen. Hermione refused to tell anyone. That was probably a good thing.


	62. Chapter 61: Unwanted and Wanted Kisses

**I'm so sorry about the delay. I started marching band recently. Just so you know I have heard that SOPA 2013 is fake! The guy who made it up was arrested. I have shoulder instability, so lots of doctor appointments and physical therapy is in my future. I will update spontaneously. Sorry everyone. FYI: I know Nina is a Mary Sue. This is my first story so cut me some slack!**

**TigerChik1242: Thank you so much for your constructive critic. I love when people try to make my story better but are still polite about it.**

**ZoeyMarieSnape: I am going to kill Siri so I can stick to the story. He will come back though. As will Remus and Tonks. Fred will not die at all.**

**BTW the cruise was so much fun. I met this guy who only lives 40 minutes away from me. He asked me out and I said yes! Thank you to all of my other reviewers!**

Chapter Sixty One: Unwanted and Wanted Kisses

The D.A. was good for everyone. Harry was a pretty good teacher. He was a lot better than Umbridge anyway. During the first lesson, he went back to the basis. We did Expelliarmus. Zacharias Smith was against doing it. The funny thing was, he was the worst at it.

I was in Professor Binns' class. He was talking about a the Gigantomachy. It was funny how my uncle zeus finally managed to swallow his pride and teamed up with demigods. I heard a tapping at the window and turned to see two snowy owls. The one with rainbow wings was supporting the one without them.

Harry and I rose at the same time to open the window and let the owls in. Harry reached the window first. He gently picked up his owl and Skittles flew to me. I brought her to my desk and opened the letter she had brought me. It was from Chiron.  
Dear Nina and Lavender,

It is with a heavy heart that I must tell you such upsetting news. Your brother arrived for winter break recently. The morning after he arrived, Silina went to wake him up. When she knocked on the door, there was no answer. She went in and found the room empty. There were no signs of a struggle. The bed was unslept in. I saw Percy go into his room myself. There is no telling what happened to him. Please come home for Christmas break to aid in the search.

My deepest apologies,

Chiron

I felt tears filling my eyes. I passed the letter on to Lavender. She started shaking as she finished the letter. Tears were welling in her glassy eyes. "Are you alright, Miss Brown?" Professor Binns asked. Lavender didn't answer. She just kept staring at the letter.

"Perhaps I should take her to the bathroom, Professor," I suggested, trying to hide my own tears. _What had happened to my brother?_

"Of course, Miss Jackson," Binns said.

I jumped up and grabbed Lav's arm. Skittles flew up onto my shoulder. Vati looked at us curiously before turning back to her notes. I rushed Lav to the nearest bathroom. Lav wrapped her arms around me and began sobbing. I gently rubbed her back and lowered us to the buried her face in the crook of my neck. I rested my chin on top of her head and let my own tears fall.

After a few minutes, Lavender pulled away. She wiped the tears away from her cheeks. "I-I'm going t-to go back to th-the dorm," she stuttered.

"Do you want me to come with you," I asked, trying to keep myself together for Lav's sake. She shook her head, not noticing the cracking of my voice.

"I-I want to be by myself for a little bit." I nodded in understanding. I could use some alone time as well. Lav left me alone. I barely registered the door shutting as I stood up. I walked over to the sink. I looked up into the mirror. My cheeks were a pasty white. My eyes were bloodshot.

I clenched my hands. I was shocked my hard grip didn't break the sink. I closed my eyes, attempting to block out the world. I felt my dam break as tears began pouring down my face. My life had been almost perfect. I had an amazing boyfriend and a huge family that almost all loved me. Now, it felt like my life had been riding on a thin piece of thread that had just snapped. I was gasping for breath. i felt anger bubbling up inside me. For once, my life had been amazing, and some deity had to go and ruin it. I felt my throat go raw as my scream pierced the silence. I brought my fistforward so it connected to the mirror. Glass shattered and went flying.

It was like time had slowed down. I could see a piece of glass heading for my Achilles heal, but I didn't move. I just stood there, almost as if I was welcoming death. I tried to think of the upsides of dying as the glass flew towards me. I could forever be with my favorite uncle. I could see all my friends who had been killed. but I would miss Apollo. As that thought went through my head, a tan hand darted out in front of my face.

Suddenly, all feeling came back to me. I flipped around to see the god who had been haunting my dreams. "Apollo," I whispered. My boyfriend opened his arms. I collapsed forwards. I was sick of being strong. I needed a shoulder to cry on. I had just led a war for Olympus' sake. I shook as tears began to pour down my cheeks. Apollo just rubbed my back like I had done with Lavender. Apollo began to sing.

Please come now I think I'm falling  
I'm holding on to all I think is safe  
It seems I found the road to nowhere  
And I'm trying to escape  
I yelled back when I heard thunder  
But I'm down to one last breath  
And with it let me say  
Let me say

Hold me now  
I'm six feet from the edge and I'm thinking

Maybe six feet  
Ain't so far down

I'm looking down now that it's over  
Reflecting on all of my mistakes  
I thought I found the road to somewhere  
Somewhere in His grace  
I cried out heaven save me  
But I'm down to one last breath  
And with it let me say  
Let me say

Hold me now  
I'm six feet from the edge and I'm thinking

Maybe six feet  
Ain't so far down  
Hold me now

I'm six feet from the edge and I'm thinking

Maybe six feet

Ain't so far down

Sad eyes follow me  
But I still believe there's something left for me  
So please come stay with me  
'Cause I still believe there's something left for you and me  
For you and me  
For you and me

Hold me now

I'm six feet from the edge and I'm thinking

Hold me now

I'm six feet from the edge and I'm thinking

Maybe six feet

Ain't so far down

Hold me now

I'm six feet from the edge and I'm thinking

Maybe six feet

Ain't so far down

Please come now I think I'm falling  
I'm holding on to all I think is safe

Apollo lifted my face up. He bent his head down and kissed away my tears. "H-he's gone," I hiccuped.

"I know, love," Apollo soothed. He kept my face in his hands. "They're doing everything they can to find him. I swear on the Styx." Thunder boomed in the distance. Apollo sat down, crossing his legs. I plopped myself down on his lap. I curled up into the god's side. I sniffled. "As much as I hate seeing you upset," Apollo continued," I have more bad news to tell you."

"Can't it wait," I groaned.

"I'm afraid not," Apollo sighed. "This will be my only chance to tell you." I looked up at my boyfriend to see him nervously chewing his bottom lip. I reached up and gently pulled his lip from between his teeth with my thumb.

"What else could be wrong?" I asked.

"Erm, my father made another one of his stupid decisions today. HedecidedtocloseOlympus."

"I'm sorry, amore, but I didn't catch that. Could you repeat it a little slower?"

"Zeus decided to close Olympus. That means I can't come down to see you-"

"And I can't go up to see you." Apollo nodded glumly. "That pig headed idiota! What the Hades is he hoping of accomplish?"

"Well, first of all, the giants are rising. My father thinks by locking the gods on Olympus they won't be able to rise."

"They'll rise anyway! How stupid can Zeus get?" Thunder rumbled in the distance after I finished my statement.

Apollo cringed. "Please don't insult my father too much. I like my girlfriend exactly as she is, not as a pile of ashes."

"There's another reason he closed Olympus isn't there?" I growled.

Apollo nodded his head slowly. "He thinks I've been spending too much time with you. He believes you're distracting me from driving the sun chariot."

"I haven't seen you since summer!" I shouted. "Anyways, your chariot has autopilot, and you always take me in the chariot with you. Therefore, you're still doing your job."

"I know that," Apollo sighed. "But you know how much my father dislikes me. Plus, he's mad at you for turning down the gift of godhood. This is his way at getting back at us."

"But I don't want to lose you, 'Pollo. I love you."

"I love you too, Sparkles," Apollo smiled slightly. He lightly kissed my forehead. "I'll stay the rest of the night."

"I have a D.A. meeting later. I don't think t would be a good idea for you to go to that."

"No, I'll wait in your dorm for you. Wait, aren't the D.A. meetings banned now. You could get in serious trouble for that."

I rolled my bloodshot eyes. "It's sweet of you to care,but she can't hurt me because of the curse. I doubt she'll be able to find my Achilles heal. Even if she did, I think people would notice if she murdered me."

"Don't talk like that," Apollo snapped. "Do you know how much I worry about you everyday? I managed to annoy Hermes with my paranoia. I always wonder what would have happened if you had been killed. You're mortal, and I'm not. I'll still be like this when you're old and in a wheelchair."

I had never thought about this. What would happen if I died. What would happen when I was in my seventies? Would Apollo stay with me? "Let's not think of that right now," I murmured. Apollo nodded and stood up with me in his arms.

"I'll drop you off at your next class. What is it?"

"Potions with Sev. It's in the dungeons." Apollo smiled and started walking towards the dungeons. Luckily, no one was outside the bathroom. "Can you put me down?" I asked. Apollo just shook his head and followed my directions to the dungeons.

Sev jumped up and bowed when he saw Apollo enter the potions classroom. "No need to bow," Apollo said. "I never liked it." He set me down in the chair I pointed to. "I'm going to visit Freya. I'll be in your dorm after the D.A. meeting, Nina." I smiled at my boyfriend and waved goodbye to him. Sev and I shut our eyes as he flashed away. Sev just smirked at me as everyone else entered the classroom.

Apollo's POV

I flashed into the entrance hall of Sirius Black's house. I snapped my fingers to shut up the son of Hermes' grovelling mother's portrait. _What did Hermes see in her?_ "Freya, Black," I called. A little blonde head poked out from behind the kitchen door. Sirius Black's head peered out from above my daughter's. I raised an eyebrow at the man as he threw the door the rest of the way open. Sirius quickly bowed. "I hate when people growled," I groaned.

"I know, Apollo," Sirius smirked. Freya peeked out from behind Sirius' legs.

"Your name is Apollo?" my baby asked. I nodded as i knelt down in front of Freya. "Siri says my daddy is called Apollo too. Can I tell this man who my daddy is, Siri?" Freya looked up at Sirius with large eyes. I noticed they were the same color as mine. "Can I tell him about my mommy too?"

"Sure, midget," Sirius said as he turned to go finish what he had been doing. I assumed it wa cooking lunch because of the smell of turkey coming from the kitchen.

"Who's your mommy?" I asked first.

"Well," Freya frowned, "she's not my real mommy. My real mommy was mean. She didn't like me. She said I'm the reason Daddy left. My new mommy's name is Nina. She's really nice. She's my favorite person. She took me away from my real mommy. Nina is the bestest mommy ever!"

"I'm glad you like Nina," I smiled.

"Why?" Freya asked.

"Because, sunshine, I'm your daddy."

"Really?" I nodded. "Why did you leave me with my mean mommy. Why couldn't you have stayed or taken me with you? Siri told me that it's because you're a god, but I still don't get it." I picked Freya up and held her close to my chest. My little girl wrapped her arms around me and stared up at me with innocent eyes. She was my only child to have the same eyes as me. The others all had lighter shades of blue. "Did you not want me, Daddy?"

I looked down at Freya again. Tears were forming in her wide eyes. "Of course I wanted you, sunshine," I whispered hoarsely. All I could think about was the fact that I had made my daughter cry. "There are certain laws even gods have to follow. My father Zeus made one a really long time ago. He said that gods couldn't raise their children. He made it because I was spending too much time with my kids and not enough time on Olympus. I love all my children, Freya. Especially you. I wanted to take you away from Natasha so badly, sunshine. I wasn't allowed to. You could have been hurt if I did. I couldn't stand you getting hurt, Freya. I love you too much." Freya wrapped her little arms around me in a hug.

"Don't leave me, Daddy," Freya whispered. Her voice was so soft i wouldn't have heard it had I not been a god.

"I'll have to, baby girl. I can only stay a few more hours." I didn't want of leave my little girl, but I knew I would have to less Zeus find out.

"But I just got you, and I have so many questions for you!"

"I can stay for a few hours, sunshine," I promised. Sirius came in with three plates. They all had mac and cheese on them. I smiled and took two. I sat down on the couch Sirius gestured to and put the two plates on the table in front of it.

"I'll leave you two alone," Sirius said with a slight smile. I nodded my thanks at my nephew as he walked back into the kitchen.

"Why do you call me sunshine," was Freya's first question.

"Because I'm the god of the sun. Since you're my daughter, it made sense to call you sunshine."

That made Freya giggle. "Why were you glad that Nina is my new mommy?" she asked.

"Um, well," I stammered. _Why do little kids ask questions like that? How do you tell a child you love someone who isn't their mother? _"Nina and I...Nina and I love each other a whole lot. We're dating and when she graduates school, I'm going to ask her to marry me, Freya."

"Yay," Freya cheered. "Then, Nina will be my real mommy!" I sighed in relief. Freya was okay with it.

Nina's POV

I was in D.A.D.A. Lav hadn't shown up for any other classes. Vati had gone to check on her during lunch. I closed my eyes as I felt an intrusion in my mind. I recognized it as Apollo and let the love of my life in.

I went to visit Freya, came Apollo's cheerful voice.

How did it go?" I asked.

Great! She is very happy that you're her mommy by the way.

Awe, I have to go. Umbridge is looking at me. Tell Freya I love her. Love you, bye.

I love you too. I'll see you after your D.A. meeting.

"Miss Jackson," Umbridge shouted. "Get that ridiculous smile off your face and pay attention!"

"Sorry, Professor," I grinned. "I can't stop smiling though. I'm way too happy."

"And why is that?" Umbridge snarled.

"Freya called me her mommy," I giggled.

"That is so sweet," giggled Parvati.

"Isn't it? "Morgan went to go talk to her today," I told my friend.

"Who on earth are Morgan and Freya?" Umbridge demanded.

"Morgan is my boyfriend," I grinned. "He's the best. Freya is um, his sister. He takes care of her because their parents disowned them."

"What did he do?" Hermione demanded.

"Nothing," I snapped at the girl. "It's none of your business now is it?"

"I thought you found Freya abused on the streets," Hermione sneered.

"I did," I growled. "Morgan's parents gave her up for adoption in England. He immediately recognized her when I olwed him a picture of her."

"Silence," Umbridge ordered. "How old is this boy?" Umbridge asked eagerly. She was probably hoping to bust me. In wizarding England, a couple can only be a maximum of four years apart while the youngest partner is below the age of seventeen.

"Nineteen," I said smugly. Four year difference, perfect. It was more like a four millennia difference, but Umbridge didn't need to know that. Umbridge glared at me and carried on with the lesson. I shot a smug look at her.

At the D.A. meeting, we practiced impedimenta, stupefy, and expelliarmus. Everyone had advanced very far. We were all doing really well. I looked over at Lav. Her eyes were glazed as she shot a stunner at Luna. Luna easily deflected it. I'm pretty sure Lavender missed Percy more than I did. I had really been looking forward to showing Percy Freya.

After the meeting, Harry asked me to hang back and help him clean up a bit. I agreed for some reason. I really wanted to see Apollo, who was waiting for me in my dorm, but I was too nice to deny Harry. We were the only ones left.I started picking up pieces of confetti that had fallen from the ceiling. I attempted to move to the trash can, but found my feet stuck to the ground.

Harry was smirking at me. I looked up to see mistletoe hanging from the ceiling. Great, I'm stuck under magical mistletoe and Harry is the only one in the room. I could have just called to Apollo in my mind, but it completely went blank. The only thing I registered was Harry leaning in towards me. I clenched my eyes shut. Maybe I could pretend he was Apollo.

I cringed when Harry's lips connected with mine. His lips were chapped and rough. They were nothing like Apollo's soft, smooth ones. I immediately pulled back when I felt my feet shift. I wiped my mouth on my arm and ran from the room.

I rushed up the stairs and into my dorm. Thank Apollo Hermione was in the bathroom. Lav and Vati were sleeping. I would tell them in the morning. I pulled my pajamas on quickly and jumped into my bed. Apollo was lying on my bed with his face buried in my pillow. I tapped his shoulder and he flipped over. He flashed his infamous grin at me and pulled me into his chest. I snuggled up into him. I told him about what happened after the meeting. Apollo growled and lifted my chin. I gazed up into his fierce sapphire eyes. I had never seen something so beautiful.

Apollo leaned down. I stretched my neck and sighed as our lips connected. Apollo's smooth lips moved in sync with my own. "What was that for?" I gasped as he pulled away.

"To get him off of your mouth," Apollo frowned. I smiled and wrapped my arms tighter around my boyfriend's neck.

"Stay the night?" I begged.

"Of course," Apollo whispered. He snapped his fingers. "Now no one can look in. I'll wake you up before I have to leave. Sweet dreams."

"Good night, amore," I smiled before closing my eyes.


	63. Chapter 62: A Boy WIth One Shoe

**Sorry for the short chapter guys, but I'm tired and wanted to get this up tonight. There is a poll on my bio for this story and I also posted a link to a picture of Freya. Thank you to everyone who reviewed. I'm going for an MRI arthrogram on the seventh of October so wish me luck. I don't remember if I told you this or not, but I have shoulder instability. I may need surgery, and I definitely need phys. therapy. It will be really hard for me to update for a while, so just hang in there. Enough of my blabbering. Enjoy the chapter. Once again, sorry it's so short.**

Chapter Sixty Two: A Boy With One Shoe

The next day, Harry kept trying to corner me. I growled at him when he got to close. In Potions, Sev looked at me sympathetically. Vati had explained to him what had happened with Percy. Defense Against the Dark Arts was the worse.

Umbridge kept glaring at me. She had an evil smirk like she knew something she shouldn't have. "How's your brother been doing, Miss Jackson?" she asked, a sneer hidden in her sugary voice. I froze right then and there. I could feel tears pricking at the back of my eyes. I knew she had read my mail from Chiron. Skittles had told me that she did, but this was just crossing the line.

I looked over to Lavender. Tears were starting to fall from her eyes. "I was having trouble keeping my own back. "How dare you," hissed Parvati. "You foul, evil, cruel toad!" Vati stood up from her set before I could pull her back down. "You've been reading our mail, haven't you?"

"Detention, Miss Patil," Umbridge simpered. "Please sit down."

Before Parvati could say anything I pulled her back down. Sniffling, I wiped my eyes on the back of my shirt. Lavender raised her hand.

"May I please use the restroom, Professor Umbridge?" choked Lav.

"There is no using the facilities while in my class, Miss Brown," Professor Umbridge sneered. I saw something in Lav's eyes. I hadn't seen it since over the summer, and it was something I never wanted to see again. Lav's eyes had hanged from their normal brown to a dark green.

Umbridge flinched back in fear. "Shut up and go to Hades," snarled Lavender, pulling her wand from the pocket of her robes. She held it threateningly in front of her. Her arm was being exposed.

"What do you think you are doing, Miss Brown?" shrieked Umbridge. "Detention!"

"I don't care," growled Lav.

"Lav, sit down," Vati whispered, trying to pull Lav back into her seat. Lavender grudgingly sat back down.

"What was that on your arm?" Seamus asked.

Lavender winced and rubbed her arm. The burn had scarred. Lavender hated it. She may be my best friend, but she was still a daughter of Aphrodite. She hated anything that marred her skin. Personally, I thought scars showed your character.

_Relax,_ I whispered to my friend in Greek. _This is the last day of school. Tomorrow, we'll be back home. We will all help search for P-Percy._ I choked up at the thought of my brother being in danger. Lavender glared at me for a second before ighing and plopping back into her seat. Poor Lavender has to suffer through detention with Umbridge when we get back.

The train ride to King's Cross seemed to drag on forever. When we got to the station, I grabbed Vati and Lav's hands and we disappeared into the mist. I didn't have of be careful anymore because people knew mages existed.

We were swarmed by people when we arrived at camp. "Hades!" I cursed. Lav and Vati looked at me funny. "I promised Freya I would come visit her over Christmas break."

"Mommy!" called a tiny voice. I flipped around. My yelp was muffled by blond hair as my little girl jumped on me, knocking me to the ground.

"Hi, Freya," I choked. "Would you mind letting me up?"

"Sorry, Mommy," giggled Freya. "I made new friends here!" Freya rolled off of me and pulled me to my feet. I laughed as she dragged me to the rest of the Apollo cabin. Freya led me to Will. Will held out his arms to her. Freya let go of my hand and jumped into her half brothers arms.

"Hey, Will," I smiled. "How goes it?"

"Hey, Nina," Will smiled sadly. "It's been kinda dreary since, well, you know." I nodded, trying not to think about how my brother could be dead or worse. "Dad brought Freya to camp yesterday. She was exactly what we needed to cheer ourselves up. She makes everyone laugh." Freya nodded eagerly. I smiled and took her from Will.

"Wanna meet, Lav and Vati?" I asked her. She nodded eagerly. Grinning, I carried her over to my friends.

"Aw, she is so cute!" squealed Vati. Freya waved shyly from my arms. Lav just smiled at her. My friend's eyes gazed longingly at the beach.

"Go," I whispered. "We'll come get you if anything important happens." Lav smiled and started walking to the beach.

Lav's POV

I sighed as I sat down in the soft sand. Tears started welling up in my eyes. I tried to blink them back, but I was too slow. Glassy-eyed, I stared at the sand as my teardrops mixed with it.

When I had read the letter, I could almost feel my heart shatter into a million pieces. I understood now what heartbreak was. I felt as though someone had ripped my heart out and started burning it in front of my own eyes. There was nothing I could do to stop them either.

Sighing, I rubbed my hands up and down my arms. A light snow had begun to fall over the beach. I wasn't cold though. For some reason, there can be tons of snow in Camp Half-Blood, but you're never cold. I was about to get up, when I heard footsteps coming towards me.

Startled, I jumped to my feet and pulled Elpida and Pisti, my twin daggers. I flipped around to find myself an inch away from skewering the Oracle. "Sorry, Rachel," I muttered as I sat back down on the snow covered sand.

"I'm sorry about Percy, Lavender," Rachel sighed.

"S'not your fault," I muttered.

"I know," Rachel sighed. "I wish I could use my gift to see what happened to him though. Or who took him."

"That would be nice," I chuckled softly. "Hey, Rachel, what does it feel like giving a prophecy?" I got no answer. "Rachel?" I asked, turning my head.

Rachel wasn't Rachel anymore. She was Delphi. Her eyes were glowing a poison green. Smoke spewed from my friends mouth. I started to back up a little, when Rachel turned her head to face me. A voice rose from the smoke. "_**To find the one you are seeking, you must search for the boy with one shoe.**_" Rachel fell sideways as the green mist vanished. I caught her and laid her down gently. What did she mean I have to find the boy with one shoe to find Percy?


	64. Chapter 63: Umbridge's Nightmare

**This chapter is completely ZoeyMarieSnape's idea. I loved it so much, I had to put it in. She came up with the idea of Umbridge's dream and told me how to write it. I added a little here and there, but other then that it is completely her idea. Thank you to all my reviewers. Please enjoy ZoeyMarieSnape's mini contribution to my story. Because it is a little gruesome, I will change the rating to T. If anyone else has any ideas for extra chapters, feel free to PM me or leave it in a review.**

Chapter Sixty Three: Umbridge's Nightmare

No One's POV

Umbridge smirked as she stepped into bed. The Jackson girl deserved what she got. The obnoxious mage had no right to be going around spreading lies about You-Know-Who's return. Her annoying brother got what he deserved as well. She fell asleep, a smirk on my face.

Umbridge awoke to find herself attached to a surgery table by stygian iron chains. She wildly thrashed around, trying to find some escape. A dark chuckle came from one corner caused the cruel, evil toad. Umbridge turned her head in the direction of the sound. The ugly professor was shaking violently. A man was hiding in the shadows. Ominously, he stepped forth into the dim light. "L-Lord Hades," Umbridge stammered.

"Dolores Jane Umbridge," the god sneered. "I have half a mind to rip your intestines from your body and feed them to Cerberus."

"What have I done wrong, my lord," Umbridge asked nervously.

"What haven't you done?" Hades asked, a sneer twisting his lips.

"I-I'm afraid I'm not sure what you're talking about, m-my lord."

Hades raised an eyebrow and lifted his right hand, causing Umbridge to cower. A resounding _Snap! _filled the air. Hounds made of shadows lunged at Umbridge from the different corners of the room. The professor's high-pitched squeal did nothing to deter the dogs. Umbridge howled in pain as sharp claws dug into her chubby legs. Blood dripped from the once pure white table and onto the black floor. Hades snapped his fingers again. The hounds shrunk back into the shadows.

"Please, no more," begged Umbridge.

"Did you show mercy to the child you were torturing when she said he believed Harry Potter?"

"N-No," Umbridge stammered.

"Then why should I show you any?" Hades asked, his smirk widening. He pulled a

long, thin knife from his belt. He laid the blade on Dolores' thick arm. Smirking, he dug the blade a little into her flesh, cutting Umbridge deeper as he spoke. "You would do well not to harm my favorite niece, Dolores Umbridge."

"My l-lord, please stop, I do not know who it is that your niece is!"

"You know her quite well, Dolores," Hades assured the shaking woman. He slowly lifts the blade from her arm. "Why don't you think and take a guess?" Umbridge's arm was coated in her own blood. "I'm positive you can figure it out."

Umbridge had to think a bit. "Chr-Christina Jackson?"

"Bravo, Dolores," Hades hissed. "Christina is my niece. You would do well not to harm her or her friends. You may find me, paying you another visit."

Dolores Umbridge squirmed as the knife sunk deeper into her arm. "O-of course not, Lord Hades."

Hades removed the blood-soaked knife from Dolores' arm. "Good, Dolores, you would find yourself in a nice spot in my Fields of Punishment if you _slipped._" The last word rolled off Hades' tongue as the knife plunged into Dolores' stomach. First, he carved a circle. Underneath the circle, was a curved line forming an upside down arc. A line shot down from the arc with another line crossing that one.

"Next time," Hades warned, "you will not be so lucky. My knife may just slip, and you could lose a finger or two. Be glad my son and grandson were not with me, Dolores. They would have done far worse than I."

Umbridge woke up, gasping for breath. She ran her hand across her stomach, sighing when she felt no cuts. She stood up, wincing at a sudden pain in her legs. Umbridge looked into the mirror, but so no scars on her legs or stomach. "What happened?" she asked to no one in particular. She jumped when a cool chuckle sounded throughout her room.

Sev's POV

I was a little curious, I'll admit. Dolores wasn't one for being late. I glanced at her curiously when she walked through the staff entrance. She was pale and shaken. I wonder what got into her. There were dark circles under her eyes that suggested she had not slept well last night. I was about to ask her what was wrong, out of curiosity, not because I care for her after what she did to Nina, when I saw the mark. On her hand, was a mark that was easily recognizable by any demigod, especially descendents of Hades. It was the mark of my grandfather. He must have visited her in her dreams and given her a warning. Nina was his favorite niece, afterall.


	65. Chapter 64: Why Is It Always Trios?

**Here's the next chapter guys. I got an MRI arthrogram done today. It wasn't that bad when they were dying my ligaments and stuff, but now my arm is so soar. Here's where TLH starts for real guys. Vati gets her first quest! Nina goes with the Hunters, so don't worry, she will be in this part. Thank you guys for voting. As of right now, Nina will be getting kidnapped. I already figured out the perfect time for her to get kidnapped. Shout out if you can guess it. Keep sending in ideas for chapters. I got a great one from percyjacksonfan135 that I'm putting at the end of the story. You can either PM me your ideas or leave them in a review. I love your name by the way I 3 Green Day.**

Chapter Sixty Four: Why Is It Always Trios?  
Nina's POV

I smiled at Thalia. I waved goodbye to Lav and Vati. "You ready for a hunt?" Thalia asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I sighed. My grip tightened on my bow. Something strange was going on, and I wanted to know what it was. First, my brother goes missing. Then, Zeus closes Olympus. Third, the gods stop all contact with their kids. I had tried owling everyone I could think of, but no one would give me answers. Thalia gave me the most information, and all she told me was that the Hunters were going on a search for my brother.

Thalia grinned at me and raised her bow. The Hunters surrounded us. "We start with the Appalachian Trail," she called. She had made a good replacement for Zoe. "We'll move west from there! Let's move out." I followed the Hunters as they ran down Half Blood Hill. I sent one last look at my home before it vanished from sight.  
Lavender's POV

I gripped the pegasi's reigns hard. Butch, a son of Iris, and I were going to pick up a few demigods and a satyr. There were two boys and a girl. I hope I don't get another sister like Drew. Drew is the worst. Since Lina is off at college, Drew took over her position because she's the oldest. I would have challenged her, but since I haven't been on any quests and she's been here longer than me I'm not allowed. I think that's totally unfair because Drew is a...Happy place Lavender

The only reason I agreed to come pick up these demigods was because one of them might be a clue to finding Percy. Oh gods, I really hope Percy hasn't gotten into more trouble. "Woah," Butch exclaimed, grabbing onto the sides of the flying chariot we were riding. "Storm Spirits," I cursed. I handed Butch the reins and pulled out my knives. I didn't get a chance to fight them. There was a crack of thunder, and they all disappeared.

"What the Hades?" Butch asked as he slowly lowered the chariot to the edge of the Grand Canyon. I shrugged and walked up to the three kids standing in front of me. One was holding a golden sword. These had to be the demigods.

"Hey, my name's Leo," grinned the curly haired Latino elf. "What's yours, pretty lady?"

"Not interested," I said. Leo frowned slightly before he started grinning again. "My name is Lavender Brown," I introduced myself.

"Piper McLean," smiled the girl, holding out her hand.

"Jason Grace," the blond boy said shyly.

"Lavender look at his feet," Butch whispered in awe.

I looked down and almost hugged Jason Grace. "The boy with one shoe," I grinned.

"What?" Jason asked.

Suddenly I got mad. No, not mad. I was furious. I pointed both my knives at Jason Grace's throat. "What did you do with him?"

"What did I do with who?' Jason asked. Leo was backing up nervously. Piper had grabbed Jason's hand.

"Percy, what did you do with Percy?" I demanded.

"Lavender, calm down," Butch said. "Rachel only said he would lead you to Percy. Not that he knew where Percy was. I sighed and sheathed my knives.

I nodded my head to the chariot. "Get in," I growled. I climbed into the chariot.

"Where are you taking us?" Piper asked.

"A safe place," Butch said. "You aren't safe here. What do you know about the ancient greek gods?"

"But there just myths," Leo exclaimed.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. "Be careful who you call a myth, Leo," Jason warned.

"So you know about the gods?" I asked.

"No, er, yes, i don't know," Jason sighed. I looked at him curiously. "I don't remember much of anything," he admitted. "I know my name is Jason Grace and that I'm 15, but that's it."

"There's definitely something godly going on," I groaned. "Demigods don't just get amnesia out of no where. Where's Gleeson?"

"Coach Hedge's name is Gleeson?" Leo asked. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"He got kidnapped by the storm spirity thingies," Leo said.

"Is he going to be okay?" Piper asked.

"Gleeson knew the risks," I sighed. He had been a friend of mine. I really hoped he was okay. "Come on, we're taking you to Camp Half-Blood."

"What about my dad?" asked Piper.

"Well, technically I'm not allowed to do this, but I'll let you call him from my phone when we get to Camp."

"You have a phone?" Butch asked.

"Don't tell anyone, but I may have taken it from a burning cell phone building during the war last year when I needed to call Nina. We speak of this to know one," I told the new demigods. They nodded their heads and climbed into the chariot.  
Vati's POV

Lav brought two new demigods to Camp today. The shortest boy, who is still a few inches taller than me, is a son of Hephaestus. Don't tell anyone, but he's kinda cute. Great, I just told my brain not to tell people something. Gotta love ADHD. The only bad part about Leo is he seems to fall in love with every girl he can't have. Oh well, it probably wouldn't have worked anyway. The girl is a daughter of Aphrodite. Chiron figured out that Jason Grace is a son of Zeus. I would say he could be Thalia's full blood brother, but she's never mentioned having a brother.

Rachel just gave a prophecy. They decided that Jason would lead the quest. Leo and Piper agreed to go along. I thought about volunteering as well. I had never gone on a quest before. I thought about the prophecy and decided to volunteer. The prophecy had said:  
_Child of lightning, beware the Earth,  
The giant's revenge the seven shall birth,  
The forge and dove shall break the cage,  
And death unleash, through Hera's rage._

SInce no one else was volunteering, I figured it might as well be me. I stood up slowly. Every eye turned toward me. Lavender tried to pull me back into my seat. I swatted her hand away. "I shall be the fourth member on this quest, Chiron."

"Very well," Chiron smiled sadly. "Four members it shall be. Jason Grace, Piper McLean, Leo Valdez, and Parvati Patil. I suggest you pack and get some rest. You have a long journey ahead of you." We nodded our heads and left the amphitheater. Lav followed us out. After a few minutes, I heard others following us. Leo came up to walk next to me.

"Thanks for volunteering to help us, Parvati. None of us have any training, well except maybe Jason. Besides, you have loads more experience than the rest of us. How long have you been here?"

I smiled at how fast he said that. His ADHD was worse than Nina's, Lav's, and mine put together. "I've never been on a quest and figured this might be my only chance, Leo. I've been here since I was eleven. Oh, this is my cabin. I'll see you tomorrow." Leo waved goodbye and walked towards his cabin. I think it was just my imagination, but he seemed a little sad to see me go.  
Leo's POV

Okay, brain, whatever you do, do not fall in love with Parvati. She is way way way too far out of your league. She's a daughter of Aphrodite for Hephaestus' sake. I'm just a lowly black smith, and she's...perfect. Shut up, Brain! I told you not to fall in love with Parvati. Besides, that could mess up the quest and destroy the entire world! I am so screwed.


	66. Chapter 65:SisterlyBondingandHappyDrag o...

**Thank you for all my reviewers. To the guest, I realize Nina is a mary sue. Don't like my story, don't read it. I'm writing this for amusement, so I don't really care if you don't like it. To the other guest, I was just kinda pointing out that there are a lot of trios in these books with the title. I thought Leo's POV would be a good break for you guys. To shadeironclaw, the people in the second great prophecy are as follows; Percy, Nina, Lav, Jason, Piper, Leo, Hazel, and Frank. Annabeth will be tagging along for the quest to find the Mark of Athena. Here's the start of the TLH quest. I got half way through the book already, wow! OMG! House of Hades comes out today. I preordered it. Did anyone else? Enough of my blabbering, enjoy the chapter.**

Chapter Sixty Five: Sisterly Bonding and Happy Dragons  
Vati's POV

The next day, Piper and I woke up at dawn. My half sister smiled nervously at me. "Are you scared?" I asked. I wasn't trying to intimidate her, I just wanted to be their for my younger sister. I could tell I would actually get along with this one.

Piper took a deep breath. "I"m scared," she admitted. "I've never done something like this."

"I would be a little worried if you had," I joked, trying to lighten the mood. It seemed to work. "Do you think Leo will find a way for us to fly since we can't go over the Earth?"

I blushed slightly. The Latino demigod had haunted my dreams the previous night. "For some odd reason, I feel like we should trust him," I said. Piper chuckled and nodded her head.

"Vati, wait up!" I heard someone call from behind me. I turned to see Lavender running up to us. I sent an apologetic look at Piper. She waved it off and kept walking. "I didn't think I'd catch you," Lavender panted. "I just wanted to say I'm really proud of you. I didn't want to do this because of the search for Percy, but you stepped up. That's really brave, Vati. I guess what I'm trying to say is please don't die. I love you and I don't know how I could live without my favorite sister."

"Don't tell Padma," I grinned," but you're my favorite sister too." Lavender smiled back and wrapped her arms around me. I pulled her close and buried my face in her neck. "I didn't want to tell Piper, but I'm really scared, Lav.I've never done something like this without you and Nina."

Lavender took my face in her hands. She made me look at her. "WHo are you?" she asked.

"Parvati Patil?" I said more like a question.

"Try again," Lav prompted.

"Parvati Patil, daughter of Aphrodite?"

"No," Lavender sighed. "You are Vati, slayer of the basilisk and my sister. You can do this. Now, tell me who you are!"

"I am Vati, slayer of the basilisk and sister of Lav."

"That's my girl," grinned Lav. "Now go kill some monsters for me." I nodded and took my sisters hand. We walked over to where everyone was crowding. A giant bronze dragon stood proudly in front of us.

"The bronze dragon," I gasped. It had disappeared when Beckendorf went off to college.

"Well you coming or not?" Leo asked. He was covered in grease which made his hair stick up. I still thought he looked cute. "All aboard Festus!"

"Erm...Leo," Jason said from his seat behind Leo, "Festus means 'Happy' in Latin."

"You want us to ride to save the world on Happy the Dragon?" I asked. Leo nodded eagerly. I shrugged and climbed up between him and jason. Piper climbed up behind me and in front of Jason. I wrapped my arms around Leo as we soared up into the air.

When I woke up, we were in Quebec. Time to go visit the god of the north, or Santa, as Freya insisted on calling him. We were flying towards the ice hotel. We were going to land on the roof when two angel people landed in front of us. "Who are they?" Piper whispered in my ear.

The angel sons of Boreas," I whispered back. The sons of Boreas began talking. They argued with Jason and Leo. They scrawny one flirted with Piper. The thick one, who seemed to like hockey, kept talking about smashing Leo. In the end, we came to an agreement. I would stay with Leo and Calais on the first floor, and Jason and Piper would go talk to Boreas with Zephes and the goddess of snow, Khione. I really didn't like her. She was a lot like Drew with an evil aura.

"Wou want pizza?" Cal asked when his sister and brother had left with our friends.

"Sure," Leo grinned crazily. I rolled my eyes, but shrugged my shoulders. Call grinned and ran into the room next to us. He returned with two boxes of cheese pizza and a remote. He flopped down on the couch, which was made of ice. Calais turned on a hockey game and gestured for us to sit next to him.

I sat down, but it was freezing. Leo sat next to me. I curled up into his side. He was so warm! I didn't wonder why he was so warm in such a cold place though. Leo handed me a slice of pizza before grabbing one for himself.

I jumped when Jason and Piper came down the stairs. I noticed Leo's eyes following Khione. For some reason, I felt jealousy flare through my body. We all jumped on Festus and flew away from the ice hotel. I wonder what they were talking about with Boreas.

The next time I woke up, we were falling from the sky. I screamed and clung to Leo. In hindsight, I realized that wouldn't do anything, but it was still comforting. I groaned when Jason and Piper slammed into us. Jason, being a son of Zeus, was able to slow down our fall slightly. It still hurt when we crashed through the ceiling. I heard the crack of my sister's ankle breaking. Jason set it while Leo and I went out to search for Festus.

Of all the places Festus could have landed, it had to be the porta potties. The dragon's hide was steaming hot, but that didn't seem to bother Leo. I remembered something Beckendorf had told me when I first came to Camp. It was somthing about some sons of Hephaestus being fire mages and how they were really dangerous. I gasped. Leo was a fire mage.

Leo opened the control panel on Festus' head and cursed in Spanish. I suddenly wished I could speak Spanish like Nina. I spoke French, English, and Greek. Leo said, "The wiring in the control panel froze over."

"Are you a fire mage or not, Leo," I retorted. "Make some fire and unfreeze it!" Leo blushed and his hair started smoking.

"How did you know?" he asked.

"The fact that you're touching a 1,000° metal dragon."

Leo's blush worsened, but he did as I said. "Please don't tell anyone."

"I won't," I promised. Leo jumped off of Festus' back. He froze and stared into the sludge that had come out of the porta potties. "Erm...Leo?" I asked. He didn't seem to notice me.

"You killed my mom!" Leo yelled.

"No I didn't," I whimpered. "I never met your mom, Leo." Leo didn't seem to hear me. He kept staring at that one spot in the ground.

Leo grabbed a toilet seat and threw it into the sludge. "Leave me alone!" he growled. Leo grabbed a hammer from his magic tool belt. "Come one, Vati," he urged. "Jason and Piper need our help." I nodded and followed him back to the warehouse.

When we got there, I saw two people hanging from the ceiling. I looked closer and noticed they were Piper and Jason. Jason wasn't moving, but Piper was squirming. There were two cyclopes underneath them. One was lighting a fire. The other was supervising him. I saw one cyclops leave the warehouse. Leo worked furiously on something. He was making what looked like a universal remote. Leo finished his remote and started wiring it to the machines. I had seen Beckendorf do this enough times.

One of the cyclops seemed to have heard us. He rose and lumbered toward us. Leo hit a button on his remote. The robot arm on one of the machines Leo had wired came down on the cyclops. Violently, it threw him up in the air. The cyclops didn't come back down again, just dust. The third cyclops came back into the warehouse. "Ma, I got the extra-spicy-"

He never got to finish the sentence. Leo's second machine came crashing down on him, blasting him into dust. "You busted my boys!" yelled the third cyclops. She stood up and started towards us. "Only I get to bust my boys!" She ripped the arms off the robots. I didn't know what Leo was going to do now. "Any more tricks, demigod?" the cyclops sneered.

"I'm going to destroy you with fire," Leo said, looking up. I followed his gaze to see an engine block hanging by a thin chain over the cyclops. Leo sent a white hot bolt of fire at the chain. The cyclops looked up in time to see the engine block fall. She was smashed into dust.


End file.
